Waiting on the Family Man
by YoAngel4E
Summary: Takes place after “Waiting In The Wings”. What if Angel and Cordelia hadn’t been interrupted in the dressing room at the ballet, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? AC pairing
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

CHAPTER 1 

Angel woke up and noticed two things immediately. One, he was naked, and two, something warm was lying next to him. He opened his eyes to find Cordelia's naked form lying across his chest on a cramped couch. Immediately, Angel panicked, jumping to his feet and sending Cordelia's body onto the floor, waking her up.

"What the…" Cordelia woke up, seeing Angel's form towering over her as he scrambled to put his boxers back on. "Angel! What the hell is going on? Why are you in my room and why the _hell_ are you naked?"

"Take a look around!" Angel motioned his arms as he buttoned back up his shirt. "We aren't in your room and your naked too."

Cordelia looked down, realizing she had more clothes on then Angel had at first, but not much. The only things covering her were her underwear and bra. She then looked around the room, realizing they were not in her room but in fact they were in the dressing room at the ballet. Suddenly, Cordelia began panicking, throwing her gown back on. "Angel…"

"I know, I know." Angel had his back to her now, allowing her to get dressed. Things were already clearly awkward; he didn't want to make them worse.

"Angel, look at me." Cordelia commanded, and he replied, turning to see her completely dressed. "Did we…" She eyed up the couch, already knowing the answer. She remembered it all, every kiss, every moan.

Angel nodded, swallowing hard. He remembered it all too. "We did."

"Oh crap. You're evil." Cordelia scrambled behind the couch, so something was now in between her and Angel. "You stay away from me!"

"What? Cordy…" Angel moved, but Cordelia countered his steps so the couch was still between them. "Cordelia, I am not evil."

"You have to be." Cordelia told him. "Because every time you…" She looked over at the couch. "You know…every time you do it, Angelus comes back. Well except that one time with Darla and all but you were no way happy about that so. And anyway, we…well we did it so…"

"Cordelia, I am not Angelus." Angel said.

"That's exactly what Angelus would say." Cordelia reasoned.

"He also would have ripped your throat out by now." Angel said.

Cordelia thought for a moment. That statement was true. If it were Angelus she would probably be dead now. "True…"

"Cordelia, it's me." Angel told her. "Angel."

After a moment, she nodded. "I know." She sounded a little disappointed.

"Well don't be too happy I am not a blood-thirsty killer." Angel replied.

"It's not that, Angel." Cordelia said quickly. "You know I am happy you're not Angelus, its just…"

"It's just what?" Angel asked, folding his arms across his chest. Things were getting more awkward with every passing second and he had a feeling that wherever their conversation was going, things were about to get even weirder.

Cordelia was silent for a moment, as if contemplating her words. Then she spoke. "Was I not good?"

Yep, things just got ten times more awkward. Angel cleared his throat. "Uh, sorry? What?"

"You know." Cordelia stood up straight, rubbing her arm as if she had a chill. "Was I not _good_?" She looked down at the couch for emphasis.

Angel looked at the couch and then back at Cordelia. "No. You were fine. From what I can remember." And that was the truth, in fact, she was better then fine, but Angel didn't want to make things any weirder.

"So then why aren't you evil?" Cordelia asked insecurely.

"Because it wasn't us, Cordy." Angel said. "I mean, it was us, I remember it, all of it, but we weren't in control. How could I get a taste of bliss knowing we couldn't stop what was happening to us? It was those spirits."

Cordelia nodded after a moment. It all made sense is you thought about it. Still, she wasn't sure if Angel was just trying to make her feel bad about the uncomfortable situation they were in. "Look if we ever get out of here, can we keep this to ourselves? This is totally weird as it is."

Angel nodded quickly. "Completely. Just between you and me."

"Good." Cordelia said, and not a moment later Gunn, Wesley, and Fred came busting in the doors.

"Damn, you guys missed the whole show. What are you doing back here?" Gunn asked.

Cordelia looked at Angel for an answer, finding herself speechless for once.

"Just checking things out." Angel said. "I've seen the show before."

"Find anything weird?" Fred asked.

Angel shook his head. "No. Whatever was happening here, we fixed it."

"Are you certain?" Wesley asked.

"Positive." Angel winked at Cordelia. He didn't want to embarrass her, and he just wanted things to go back to normal between them. He didn't want to lose his best friend over possessing spirits, but he was hurt that his first intimate moments with her were not at her will, but a spirit in her body. He knew he was falling for Cordelia with each passing minute, and tonight's events had not helped matters.

"Why don't we head back to the hotel?" Cordelia suggested, trying her best to make things between her and Angel not as strange as she knew they could be, as she looped her arm in his. After all, best friends did things like that, right?

But Cordelia couldn't help her heart beat pick up as her skin brushed up against Angel's, nor could the vampire help the fact that he flinched as her arm touched his. The next few weeks were certainly going to be awkward at the Hyperion Hotel.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted in the dressing room at the ballet, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 2**

Angel, Cordelia, Gunn, Wesley, and Fred all made their way back into the Hyperion Hotel after their night at the ballet. Wesley, Gunn, and Fred had been very vocal in the car ride home, speaking of how great the performance was, but Cordelia and Angel had kept quiet, both feeling awkward at the nights events that had unfolding between them, and both were more then happy to get back into the hotel.

As the group entered, they found Lorne sitting over a magazine at the table.

"You're back!" Lorne's face lit up. "How was it?"

"Amazing." Gunn said simply, flopping himself onto the couch next to Lorne. "I've never seen anything like it in my life!"

"How was Connor?" Angel asked, not really wanting to talk about the ballet. He was angry with himself that after all that had happened between himself and Cordelia earlier that night that he still couldn't tell her he had feelings for her.

"Slept like a baby." Lorne said, sensing something was bothering Angel.

Angel nodded, digging his hands into his pockets. "I am going to go check on him." And before anyone could object, Angel was up the stairs.

"What's with him?" Lorne asked, looking directly at Cordelia, also sensing weird vibes coming from her.

Cordelia shrugged. She was certain that Angel had gone upstairs to avoid the clear discomfort that was now between the two best friends. "I should go talk to him."

"Well, actually, Cordelia…there is…" Lorne started, not sure how to explain the arrival of the secret new guest at the Hyperion Hotel. "There is a surprise down here for you."

"Give me a second." Cordelia said, taking off up the stairs after Angel before anyone could stop her.

"What's the surprise?" Fred asked, curious.

"I am." Groo stepped out from behind the counter.

"Groosalugg?" Wesley raised an eyebrow.

Groo nodded. "I prefer Groo."

"Well, this will sure suprise Cordelia." Gunn said.

"I hope so." Groo replied. "I have missed my princess very much."

Everyone nodded, understanding. Like they all agreed earlier, Cordelia would certainly be surprised by the sudden and unexpected arrival of the Groosalugg, and hopefully as happy about it as Groo appeared to be.

Angel entered Connor's room to find his son wide-awake, but quiet in his crib. Angel was grateful Connor was not a crier. He was not sure he could handle having a son who was constantly blowing out his eardrums. He moved over to Connor's crib and scooped the baby up into his arms.

"How you doing, buddy?" Angel asked Connor gently.

Connor just giggled, smiling up at his father.

"Well, it seems you had a better night with Uncle Lorne then your daddy did with Cordelia." Angel sighed, sitting down in the rocking chair with Connor. "Not that my night with Cordy was bad…it just…well it wasn't what I wanted it to be. You get that right?"

Connor just looked up at Angel with a tired stare.

Angel sighed. "Yeah, I figured you wouldn't really get it. Maybe when you're older."

"Give him a couple of years. He's smart, just like his daddy." Cordelia's voice filled the room.

Angel's head snapped up to see Cordelia standing in the doorframe. "Cordy…" Angel couldn't help staring at her; she still looked beautiful in her dress.

"Can we talk?" Cordelia asked.

Angel nodded, knowing that if he had a pulse, he would have been blushing at this point, and surprised that Cordelia was remaining so calm. "Sure." He stood, placing Connor back in his crib.

Cordelia played with her bracelet, and then took a seat in the rocking chair Angel had just been sitting in. "So tonight was…well…strange…"

Angel nodded, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "To say the least."

"But…like you said, it wasn't us." Cordelia added quickly. She could not let her word betray her. She was not sure, but somewhere over the past few weeks she had started thinking about Angel, and not as her friend, but as something more. She wasn't sure, not yet, but she was starting to think she had real feelings for her undead friend.

"But it was us." Angel said, not making eye contact with his seer.

"But you said it wasn't. You said it was the spirits." Cordelia repeated Angel's words from earlier that night.

"I know what I said, but face it, Cordy. It was us." Angel said softly. "You and me. Cordelia, we were there." He knelt down in front of her.

"I know." Cordelia nodded, as if she had known it all along but was afraid to face the truth. "But…" She looked down at her hands. "It's better if we pretend it wasn't."

"I agree." Angel sighed. "Because…"

"Because things between us don't need to get awkward or complicated." Cordelia cut him off, trying to finish his sentence.

"No." Angel said quickly. That wasn't what he meant at all. "Because…if something…" He took a deep breath, he knew what he was about to say had to come out just right. "Because if something were to happen between us…I just…this isn't how they should start…"

"Angel?" Cordelia questioned softly. "What are you saying?"

"I…uh…" Angel stood quickly, turning his shoulder so he didn't have to look her in the eye. "I…well…"

Before Angel could finish, Lorne's voice was shouting up the stairs. "Cordelia! Please come down! This is important!"

Cordelia look at Angel who nodded.

"Come on." Angel motioned for Cordelia to follow him out the door. "We can talk about this later. It sounds like Lorne really wants you downstairs."

Cordelia nodded, following Angel out of Connor's bedroom. The seer was confused about what Angel had been trying to tell her, although in the back of her mind, she knew where her vampire-friend was going with the conversation, and regardless of what she wanted to tell herself, she knew she had wanted to hear it. She just hoped he would tell her what he had been trying to after she got her surprise from Lorne, whatever it was that it was so important that the green-skinned demon had interrupted her and Angel.

Angel followed Cordelia down the stairs and into the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel where they found Gunn, Wesley, Fred, Lorne and another person standing. The unidentified person had his back to Angel and Cordelia and was dressed rather awkward for a night out in Los Angeles. Immediately both Cordelia and Angel looked at each other, assuming a late night client had arrived.

"Some surprise…" Cordelia mumbled to Angel with a small smile. She didn't understand why Lorne had been so anxious for her to meet their client.

Angel just smiled back at her; annoyed that Lorne had interrupted his moment alone with Cordelia.

"Cordelia!" Lorne was the first to spot her.

"So what's this surprise about Lorne?" Cordelia asked.

Lorne motioned to the unidentified being in the lobby. "You have a visitor."

Cordelia smiled, a little amused by Lorne. "And who might that be…" She started but caught herself mid-sentence when the stranger revealed himself. Cordelia's eyes grew wide, and a smile exploded across her lips. "Groo!"

"Princess!" Groo shared her excitement as he outstretched his arms and accepted Cordelia's huge hug. "I was so afraid you had forgotten me."

Cordelia giggled slightly, looking Groo directly in the eye. "Never." She then dove in for the kiss she had thought she would never have again.

Angel watched, the small smile on his face fading away. Lorne sensed the vampire's pain as he watched the scene in front of him.

"He just showed up out of nowhere." Lorne whispered to Angel, explaining the Groosalugg's sudden arrival. "I didn't know what to do with him, he was so excited to be here and get Cordelia back."

Angel just nodded, digging his hands into his pockets. "Maybe its for the best."

"Do you really think that?" Lorne asked, although he already knew what Angel really thought. He felt terrible after he had tried to get Angel to express his feelings to Cordelia earlier that night.

"I can't give her anything she needs." Angel said simply. "I can't give her that." He motioned to Cordelia and Groo, smiling in each other's arms. "I'm going to go back and check on Connor."

Before Lorne could object or anyone else noticed, Angel was up the stairs.

After a few minutes, Fred actually noticed Angel was gone.

"Where did Angel go?" Fred asked.

"Back upstairs." Lorne said simply.

And for the first time since Groo's arrival, Cordelia looked for her vampire friend. She felt a bit of guilt as she realized Angel had indeed left the lobby. She also felt like she had missed something important upstairs earlier with Angel, as though he was trying to tell her something and she was just missing it.

"He probably heard Connor." Gunn reasoned. "He does have the best hearing in the house."

"That is true." Wesley said simply, avoiding eye contact with Fred. He had missed his shot with her tonight. "I think I will be heading home now. It was good to see you Groo."

"You as well, Wesley." Groo nodded is head at the former watcher.

Wesley smiled back, tightly, glancing one final time at Fred, who was too busy staring at Gunn to notice. Then Wesley proceeded out of the Hyperion Hotel.

"We should get up to bed too." Gunn said, smiling at Fred. "It's pretty late already."

Fred nodded, turning back to Groo and Cordelia and giving a slight wave. "See you two tomorrow." She then turned her attention to Gunn. "Will you walk me to my room like a gentlemen?" She giggled.

"Of course." Gunn extended his arm to Fred as she took it, and he walked her up the stairs.

"Well, I guess that's our cue to head home." Cordelia looked at Groo.

"To your home?" Groo asked.

Cordelia smiled at him as if she was smiling at an innocent puppy. "Yes my home."

Groo smiled back at her. "I am happy to hear that."

Cordelia nodded, taking Groo's hand and making her way to the door, but then stopping short.

"Forget something?" Lorne asked, noticing Cordelia's sudden halt.

"Angel." Cordelia said simply, looking at Lorne. "He went upstairs. I should go say goodnight."

Before Cordelia could make a move, however, Lorne spoke up. "Maybe you shouldn't tonight." Lorne could sense something very emotionally draining had taken place between Cordelia and Angel at some point in the night, and he knew that Groo's arrival had only added to it, especially for Angel. He didn't want to see the caring vampire hurt more then he already was.

"Why not?" Cordelia questioned Lorne at first, but then could tell the demon knew something was up. "Okay, just tell him I said goodnight."

"Will do." Lorne promised her.

Cordelia nodded, almost sadly as she led Groo out of the front doors of the hotel. For some reason, unknown to her, she felt guilty leaving without really finishing her conversation with Angel.

Angel sighed, pulling his tie off and loosening his collar as he checked back in on Connor. He couldn't believe that the Groosalugg had showed up, especially tonight of all nights. The night he thought belonged to himself and Cordelia. Angel was hurt.

"This couldn't get any worse, Connor." Angel complained to the child who was now awake in his crib. "I mean, she loves Groo. She said it herself." Angel picked up his son, making his way over to the rocking chair he had sat in earlier that night.

"And why wouldn't she love Groo?" Angel looked down at Connor as if the child would have the answer. "He is strong, heroic…he can walk in the sunshine." Angel studied Connor's face, and realized the most important thing of all that Groo could give Cordelia. "And he can give her a family. A normal life. A baby, just like you."

Angel sighed, leaning back into the rocking chair, holding his son and mourning over the missed opportunity to tell Cordelia that he had real feelings for her.

Cordelia lead Groo into her apartment, barely closing the door behind them before their lips locked. This continued for quite a few minutes, while Groo's hands roamed up and down Cordelia's back and legs, trying his best to get her out of her dress.

And it wasn't as if Cordelia was fighting to keep her dress on. She had missed Groo and was beyond happy that he was back. She kissed him a few more times but then suddenly pulled away from him.

"Princess?" Groo looked confused. "What's wrong?"

"We can't." Cordelia said, wrapping her arms around herself. Suddenly, she felt cold. "Not tonight."

Even if he was from another dimension, the Groosalugg was not stupid. He knew exactly what Cordelia meant when she said "not tonight". "Why not?" He asked.

Cordelia shook her head. Truthfully, she just didn't feel right about sleeping with Groo, not after all that had happened with Angel earlier that night. But she knew she couldn't tell Groo that Angel was the reason, because he wouldn't understand. In all actuality, Cordelia didn't really understand. She just felt it deep down. She knew that somehow her actions, if she continued, would hurt Angel.

"My visions." Cordelia used as her excuse. "We can't be sure you will not take them from me." She knew it was lame, but she didn't want to hurt Groo's feelings.

"But Lorne said you are part demon now." Groo reasoned back. "I can't take them from you."

"I just want to make sure of that." Cordelia continued to fib. "You know how much the visions mean to me. I just want to make sure I can't lose them."

After a moment, Groo nodded. He did know how much Cordelia cared about her visions. "Very well, princess. I will wait for you."

Cordelia gave Groo a tight-lipped smile. For some reason, she suddenly did not feel right about having the Groosalugg around. She hoped things would make more sense in the morning.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted in the dressing room at the ballet, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 3**

Cordelia quietly made her way out of her bedroom from a restless night of sleep to find Groo sprawled out across her living room couch, still clearly asleep. She watched the warrior from the other dimension as his chest rose and fell with each breath he took.

She didn't understand why, but for some reason the seer was unsure of having the Groosalugg around. She had been happy to see him the night before at the hotel, but not overjoyed, not how she thought she should feel if she truly loved the Groosalugg like she thought she did.

Except her thoughts kept drifting back to Angel and the night they had shared in the dressing room at the ballet. Sure, they had both been possessed by spirits, but Cordelia could remember every detail, and every touch, and they had belonged to Angel. And they had made her feel something she hadn't felt in years-safe, important, loved.

Cordelia shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking about Angel like that. He was her best friend. Plus, she was pretty sure he was still in love with Buffy. Yet, Cordelia could not get her thoughts off of the souled vampire as she started to make coffee for herself and Groo.

Angel woke up to the sound of Connor shifting back and forth in his crib. From the sound of the child's heartbeat alone, Angel could tell his son was awake. The vampire sighed, pulling his sheets down and climbing out of bed, making his way to his son's crib.

"Hey buddy." Angel said softly as he picked Connor up. "Have you been awake long?"

Connor just smiled, waving his arms around, glad to be with his father.

"So what do you think?" Angel asked his son. "Is Cordelia going to come in to work with that stupid meat headed boy toy of hers?"

Connor seemed to grin at his father's description of the Groosalugg, but he also seemed to give Angel the look that Angel knew meant Groo would more then likely show up at the hotel with Cordelia.

Angel sighed. "I figured he would come in too. Not that I really care. I mean, I care. It's not like Groo is my favorite person in the world but he makes Cordelia happy, and I guess as long as he treats her okay then I am okay with him. It's just…things got weird last night with me and Cordelia and with Groo around I think its just another reason for her and I not to talk about it, and we need to talk about it, you know?"

Connor just gazed up at his father, seeming slightly amused by Angel's abnormally ongoing banter.

Angel took a deep unneeded breath, deciding his son really didn't know. "Well, we might as well get ourselves ready for it, right?"

Connor seemed to sigh, and Angel took that as a sign that they should both get ready for the day ahead. The vampire assumed it would be a long day at that, with the Groosalugg being around.

Cordelia arrived at the Hyperion Hotel with the Groosalugg in tow to find Gunn and Fred slightly snuggling up on the couch, over some case files, while Wesley and Lorne were both at the counter, finishing lunch and talking about the latest shooting that appeared in the paper. All eyes turned when Cordelia and Groo entered.

"Hey you two." Lorne waved to Cordelia and Groo.

"Hey." Cordelia sighed, moving into the hotel lobby and tossing her purse onto the couch opposite Gunn and Fred. "What's going on?"

"Pretty slow today, actually." Gunn said, stretching out. "Not too many calls so not too many headaches."

"Good to know." Cordelia smiled.

"Speaking of headaches, any visions?" Wesley asked Cordelia.

Before Cordelia could speak, Groo cut in.

"My princess has not had a vision today, but trust me I will take care of it when it happens." Groo replied for Cordelia, most proudly.

"Actually, that's Angel's job." Fred said shyly, not wanting to hurt the Groosalugg's self-esteem. She could tell his comment had only been made out of innocence; he just wanted to take care of Cordelia. "I mean, here in L.A. its Angel's job. He's the champion here."

"Of coarse." Groo seemed to blush at his mistake. "I would not want to step on his toes. I am just here as help."

Cordelia smiled at Groo, deciding he really was like a little puppy dog. There was no way to get mad at him. "You're too cute sometimes."

"Thank you." Groo smiled back at her.

Cordelia had meant what she said. Groo was very cute, and she knew it. She just couldn't help the fact that her mind kept drifting back to Angel, and for some unknown reason, every single time it did, her stomach seemed to do summersaults. She decided then and there she needed to focus on Groo for a little while, just to get her mind off of Angel.

"Where is Angel?" Cordelia asked out of nowhere.

"Right here." Angel's voice filled the lobby as he came bouncing down the stairs with Connor in his arms. "Is something wrong? Did you have a vision?"

Cordelia raised an eyebrow at Angel, letting him know he had asked a stupid question. "You know I would have called if I had." She was unable to look Angel in the eye. He looked extremely attractive today; in a pale blue button up she had bought him last Christmas and just the right amount of gel in his spiky hair.

"Right." Angel looked down. Cordelia seemed awkward around him and that was the last thing he wanted right now. He damned those spirits for taking them over the night before, and using their bodies to have sex. He guessed the only good thing that had happened was that he had not turned into Angelus. That would have been the icing on the cake.

"So how is Connor today?" Cordelia stretched out her arms to the baby in Angel's.

"Good." Angel looked up, smiling quickly at Cordelia before handing her his son.

"You are such a sweetheart, honey." Cordelia cooed at Connor as she bounced him in her arms. For some reason, this suddenly felt right to Cordelia, like Connor was her own.

Connor smiled up at her, grabbing for a piece of her hair that had fallen out of her loose ponytail.

"Angel, may I speak to you." Groo asked out of nowhere.

"Uh sure." Angel was caught off guard, and could tell by the way Cordelia looked up at Groo's words she was shocked too. "The office?" Angel motioned to the back room.

Groo nodded, and followed Angel as the vampire led the way, stepping aside to allow Groo into the room before shutting the door behind them.

"Is something wrong, Groo?" Angel asked.

"First I want to thank you." Groo said.

"Thank me?" Angel was confused. "For what?"

"For taking care of Cordelia for me while I could not be here." Groo explained. "I was worried when she left Pylea that I would not see her again, even if I made it to this dimension. I was worried the visions would lead her to death."

"Well they almost have on quite a few occasions." Angel said, thinking of all the times Cordelia had almost been killed protecting the innocents she saw in her vision, not to mention the fact that the visions themselves had almost killed her.

"So I have heard." Groo said, almost sadly. "But I thank you for making sure she is safe."

"There is nobody I care for more then Cordelia besides my own son." Angel said, meaning every single word of it. Besides Connor, Angel felt the need to be protective of Cordelia more then anyone else he had ever met, even more then he had been protective over Buffy. He couldn't explain it, that was just how he felt.

"I am sure of it." Groo said, thinking he understood the relationship between Cordelia and Angel, but he truly had no idea just how complex the connection between the vampire and seer had become, especially after the night before. "But now I come to you with something else. I did not know who else to talk to about this, you seem to be the only person Cordelia confides in, and I figured, as a fellow champion, you would be the only one who could help me."

"I'll do what I can." Angel said, leaning back against the desk and crossing his arms in front of him.

Groo nodded. "In Pylea Cordelia was not a demon. Now, from what she has told me on the way over here, she has demon blood in her veins."

Angel nodded. "Yeah, she does. She became part demon so the visions wouldn't kill her."

"She has told me." Groo said. "So now, I wonder something…"

Angel raised an eyebrow, afraid of where the conversation was about to go. He was not really a fan of Groo, and now the other champion was starting to make him uncomfortable. "What?"

"Since she now has demon blood running through her veins, mine will no longer absorb the visions." Groo reasoned.

Angel's mouth seemed to hang opened. He knew what Groo was about to say and he did not want to hear it. "You can't be sure of that." He responded, almost in a panic.

"But I am." Groo said. "I researched it long before I got here, incase I ever came across another demon with the visions. I cannot take them from her. I should have told her last night, but it just did not seem like the right time."

"So what are you saying?" Angel asked, although he knew exactly what the Groosalugg was saying.

"I am saying, I think I will be able to finally comshuk with the princess." Groo said.

Angel couldn't help the fact that his mouth was still hanging opened. He did not even respond to the Groosalugg.

"Is that not right?" Groo asked after a moment of silence.

Angel seemed to snap back to reality. "Uh…well…first off, its called having sex here, and secondly, you can only do that with Cordelia if she says it is okay." _Except if you are me_, Angel thought, knowing neither he nor Cordelia had okayed their sex act the night before at the ballet, and knowing that for some bizarre reason, the images of Cordelia's body and the memory of her lips on his was still burning in his mind.

Groo nodded quickly. "I understand."

"So then why did you bring me in here?" Angel asked.

"Because you are like family to her." Groo explained. "And I would not want to do anything with her that her family did not approve of."

Angel raised an eyebrow. "So you're asking me if you can sleep with her?"

"Yes." Groo said. "I am."

Angel shook his head immediately. He wanted to shout NO into the Groosalugg's face. The last thing he wanted was another man touching Cordelia, _his_ Cordelia. But she wasn't really his, and Angel knew he would never want to try and control Cordelia. "I…I can't give you an answer to that, Groo. That's Cordelia's choice."

Groo nodded. "I understand. I just thought it would be right to come to one of you first."

"What Cordelia does outside of work is really not my business." Angel said, although he knew Cordelia didn't do much outside of work, and if she did, he usually knew about it. "As long as it does not interfere with her being here, I cannot control it."

Groo nodded again, extending his hand to Angel. "Thank you."

"I didn't do anything." Angel said.

"Yes you have. You took care of my princess for me." Groo smiled before exiting the office.

Once the Groosalugg left, Angel leaned back against the desk again, running a hand over his face, trying to get his mind around the conversation he had just had with the other champion. He didn't understand why Groo had come to him with such a question, and he really didn't understand why he felt such a surge of jealously. Maybe Lorne was right, maybe he really did have feelings for Cordelia, and now he realized that Groo was getting in the way of things. Angel shook his head, thinking that the events of the night before might be leading him to think he had feelings toward Cordelia. Either way, he needed to be sure. He couldn't let the awkwardness go on between himself and Cordelia, and he couldn't lose his best friend, of let her lose the chance of being loved. He knew there was only one way to figure everything out once in for all.

Angel entered back into the lobby to find the entire Fang Gang and the Groosalugg all around with the exception of Cordelia, who had Connor with her, and Fred. He wondered where the two girls had gone off to and he knew he had to find Cordelia so he could talk to her.

"Where's Cordy and Fred?" Angel asked, trying to seem casual, but failing miserably. His words came out short and brisk, not at all how he intended.

"Outside." Gunn said, not looking up from the file in his hands. "They thought it would be nice to take Connor out into the sun for a change."

"Oh." Angel said simply. Well that problem was solved; he couldn't even talk to Cordelia if she was in the sunlight. Not unless he wanted to become a pile of ash.

"I think they are out back, so you can go see them. The overhang should cover you." Wesley said, as if reading Angel's mind.

"Oh." Angel said again. Well now he could go talk to Cordelia. He silently made his way out of the lobby.

"What's with him?" Gunn looked up, directing his comment toward Groo.

Groo shrugged. "I only talked to him. Why? Does something seem wrong with him?"

"Angel isn't a man of many words, Groo." Lorne tried to explain. "So when he comes out here and talks even less then normal, we tend to think something is bothering him."

"As I said, I only spoke with him." Groo said.

"About what?" Gunn asked.

"The princess." Groo referred to Cordelia.

Lorne just raised an eyebrow. Clearly, whatever conversation had taken place between Angel and Groo involving Cordelia had bothered Angel. Lorne only hoped Angel was not about to do something stupid by going outside to find Cordelia. For some reason, even Lorne wasn't sure why, but the green demon felt that an eternal bond had recently been formed between Cordelia and Angel, and no matter what happened, the bond would always exist. He just wish he knew what that bond was.

Angel slowly made his way outside to the back of the hotel, careful to avoid all the rays of sunlight that glistened on the ground. He made his way around in the shade of the overhang until Cordelia, with Connor leaning against her shoulder, and Fred came into sight.

"Hey, Cordy." Angel said.

Cordelia looked up to see Angel cowering in the shadows of the hotel. "Shh." She whispered, motioning to Connor who had clearly fallen asleep on her shoulder.

"Can I talk to you?" Angel whispered back.

Cordelia looked uneasy, she was not sure what Angel could want to talk about, but she was positive it had to do with whatever Groo had pulled the souled vampire into the office to discuss.

"Here." Fred motioned to Connor, taking him from Cordelia before she could even react. "I'll take him inside, give you two some time to talk."

Angel nodded to Fred, silently thanking her as she moved past him with Connor and into the hotel.

Cordelia took a deep breath, straightening out her shirt before standing and making her way into the shadow of the overhang next to Angel. He motioned for her to take a seat on a bench and she complied, moving over so he had plenty of room to sit as well.

"So…" Angel took a deep breath; unsure of how to start the conversation he knew was about to take place. The truth was, he couldn't even concentrate, and being this close to Cordelia was making him panic. It didn't make sense; they were best friends, why now did he suddenly feel butterflies in his stomach as he sat next to her. He swallowed hard.

"Are you okay?" Cordelia asked, hoping he wouldn't ask her the same question back. He looked nervous, his head even looked like he was sweating a bit. She was sure she did not look any better though. She was not sure when her feeling for Angel had changed but the only thing she wanted to do as she sat next to him was pull him in for a passionate kiss, like one they had shared the night before at the ballet. She shook her head; she knew she couldn't think of Angel like that because she was positive he didn't feel the same. Things at the ballet had really screwed up her feelings all-together. Up until last night she could at least try and hide the fact that she had been thinking of Angel more and more in the boyfriend sense and less and less in the best friend sense. Now, she didn't even think she could hide that.

"Fine." Angel said all to quickly. He wasn't fine though. He was losing it. He knew it now more then ever, he really did love Cordelia Chase, and he was realizing it all too late. Now she had Groo.

"Okay." Cordelia played with the seam of her shirt. "So what did we need to talk about?"

"Groo, actually." Angel said, his tongue thick, as if Groo's name was full of poison.

"What about him?" Cordelia asked, trying to remain calm. She knew that was why Angel had come outside, but Groo was really the last thing she ever wanted to discuss with him.

"Well, he and I had a little talk about you." Angel said, taking a deep breath.

"Really?" Cordelia tried to sound surprised but she knew that if Groo had pulled Angel aside to talk, it had to be about her.

"Cordy, don't be stupid." Angel said point blank. "Did you send him in to talk to me?" It hadn't crossed Angel's mind until he had sat down next to Cordelia, but maybe she had asked Groo to talk to him. He didn't think Groo was really capable of a conversation like the one he had just had with the fellow warrior.

"What? No." Cordelia was shocked at the accusation. "What did you even talk about with him?"

"Uh…the two of you…" Angel felt himself suddenly stumbling over his words. Of coarse Cordelia had not made Groo come and talk to him, especially not after last night. "Well, you know…you two having time for yourselves."

"What?" Cordelia was confused.

Angel was not about to explain the conversation he had with the Groosalugg. Instead, he skipped over that and went straight into what he thought would be the solution to the inevitable awkwardness that would take place between himself and Cordelia. "Cordy, I think you need some time off."

"What?" Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "You mean like a vacation."

Angel nodded. "You earned it."

"Angel, I have never taken a vacation like ever since I've worked for you." Cordelia reasoned, confused by why he wanted her to suddenly be away from him.

"Exactly. So now is the perfect time." Angel lied. He didn't want her to go anywhere, but he thought it was the only way for them both to sort out their feelings. He especially needed it. Angel knew if he got anymore attracted to Cordelia he would jeopardize losing his friendship with her, and that he could not tolerate.

"Why?"

"I just…I think you need some time with Groo. The two of you." Angel sighed. "Especially after last night…"

"You want to run away from last night?" Cordelia said all too snappy and all too quickly.

"No. No." Angel answered just as swiftly. "I just think that it would be good for the two of us to just have some time apart. And you and Groo should spend time together. Go someplace warm and sunny. You would like that."

Cordelia crossed her arms, slightly annoyed. "Fine. But what if I have a vision?"

Angel smiled slightly at her comment. He could tell she was irritated but her face was too cute. He just couldn't hide smile. "That's why they invented phones."

Cordelia couldn't help it, she had to smile back at his comment. "Fine. Okay. I'll take a week or two."

"Good." Angel smiled, standing.

"I guess I'll go get Groo." Cordelia stood also.

"Sure." Angel nodded.

Cordelia returned the nod and made her way back into the hotel. As Angel watched her back disappear into the hotel he felt a sinking sensation right around his unbeating heart. He already missed her.

Wesley sat in his office quietly, away from the rest of the group. As far as he knew Cordelia and Angel were still outside talking and the rest of the Fang Gang was in the lobby, chatting about the Groosalugg's trip from Pylea and how Connor seemed to be growing so quickly.

It was not that Wesley did not want to participate in the conversation. He would certainly love to socialize, although he did like not having to be around the googly-eyed glances that Gunn and Fred kept passing to each other, but Wesley had other reasons to sit in his office that day, mainly, a prophecy that he had discovered a few days ago.

He looked down at the paper in front of him. So far Wesley had not gotten very far into the deciphering.

"The Father Will…" Wesley read the paper in front of him out loud. He still had a few more symbols to decipher before he was finished.

"The father will what?" He asked himself out loud.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 4**

It had been over two week since Cordelia had left on her vacation with the Groosalugg and Angel was at his wits end. He felt lost without Cordelia. She had crept into every one of his thoughts. Everywhere he looked he was reminded of her. Even while he was working, his mind drifting back to thoughts of her. It didn't help that, without Cordelia and the visions Angel did not have much to do as far as work either.

Angel sat in the lobby, watching Connor as the baby sat in his craddle, playing with his empty bottle. Connor was getting bigger by the day. Angel smiled at his son.

"Soon you'll be getting some teeth i think, mister." Angel cooed at his son.

Connor looked at his father, smiling slightly before going back to playing with his bottle.

Angel sighed, leaning back into the couch. Even Connor reminded Angel of Cordelia. He could tell his son missed Cordelia as much as he did, because Connor had become quite the terror late at night since Cordelia had left.

Gunn and Fred entered the lobby, breaking Angel's train of thought.

"Hey man." Gunn gave Angel a half wave.

"Where were you two?" Angel asked.

"Breakfast." Fred giggled.

Angel smiled, watching Fred and Gunn together. They were quite the odd couple. Angel would have never guessed that Gunn would ever be attracted to someone like Fred, but it was still kind of cute.

"What are you doing?" Gunn asked.

"Just watching Connor." Angel said.

"Missing Cordy." Gunn corrected the vampire.

"Huh?" Angel looked up at the sound of Cordelia's nickname.

Gunn laughed. "We can tell you miss her. You've been walking around here in a fog since she has been gone."

"Sorry." Angel apologized.

"Well, she comes back soon right?" Fred asked.

Angel nodded. "I gave her three weeks off."

"Then she will be back in a few days." Gunn said. "Until then, smile a little, man."

Angel gave a half-hearted smile at Gunn who just shook his head at the vampire before following Fred into Wesley's office, leaving Angel to brood in the lobby with his son.

Cordelia woke up to a sick feeling in her stomach. It had not been the first morning she had felt like that since she had left for her trip with the Groosalugg but she had blamed it on the foor until now. Now it couldn't have been the food, she hadn't eatten anything at dinner. She jumped out of bed, waking Groo, and just making it to the bathroom before throwing up what little food she had in her stomach.

Groo made his way tiredly to the door, hearing Cordelia getting sick. He leaned against the frame, rubbing the sleep out of his eye. "Princess, are you okay?"

Cordelia looked up at Groo with her famous queen C glare. "Do I _look_ okay?"

"Actually, you do not look well." Groo said genuinely, not understanding Cordelia's sarcastic tone.

Cordelia slowly rose from her postion over the toliet bowl, hoping her stomach would not upset her anymore. "I know I don't."

"Maybe we should go home early, so you may see a doctor." Groo suggested.

Cordelia shook her head, thinking back to the last time she had seen a doctor. It was right before the Powers had decided to turn her half demon, and the doctor had told her she was going to die. "No. No doctor. I am never sick, its probably just a cold or something."

"Well then let us at least go back to Angel. He will know what to do." Groo tried.

Cordelia let her thoughts drift back to Angel. She had missed him over the past few weeks, and after spending all the time she had with Groo, she was sure of one thing. She really did have feelings for Angel, she just didn't know how to tell the souled vampire that. Still, she would have to figure that out after she figured out why she was so sick. She turned back to Groo. "Okay. We will go back to L.A."

Groo nodded with a genuine smile, glad to have pleased Cordelia with his smart idea of going back to Los Angeles, and back to the Hyperion Hotel and the rest of the Fang Gang.

Wesley sat at his desk, still fumbling over the last few words of the prophecy he had been working to decipher for over two weeks. He still had some ways to go but he was certain the prophecy was about Angel and Connor, Wesley was just unsure if that was good or bad.

He sighed, leaning back and rubbing the bridge of his nose where his glasses sat, repeating the words on the paper in front of him. "The Father Will…the father will what?" He looked up to the ceiling as if the answer would simply fall from it.

When Wesley looked back down at the paper, he was in complete shock. It was as if the words had indeed fallen from the ceiling, because they just appeared on the paper in front of him. He swallowed hard, reading the completed sentence out loud.

"The Father Will Kill The Son…" Wesley's voice trailed off as he realized what he had just said.

"Say what?" Gunn stood at the door of Wesley's office with his mouth half opened and Fred at his side. "What did you just say?"

Wesley moved quickly, ushering Gunn and Fred into his office and closing the door behind them so Angel could not hear them speaking. "That's what the prophecy says…"

"Is It about Angel and Connor?" Fred asked the question she knew she didn't want an answer to.

Wesley shook his head. "I am afraid so."

Gunn looked out to the couch that Angel was playing with Connor on and then back to Wesley. "So how do we tell him?"

Wesley looked down at his feet. He did not have an answer to that question. He had no idea how to tell Angel that there was a chance he would kill his own son. It just didn't seem right and it didn't make sense to Wesley, still he knew they had to break the news to Angel. "I'm not sure."

"Well, we better get sure because if this thing is true then we need to get Connor away from Angel." Gunn said.

Wesley nodded. "I know."

"Are we even sure it is true?" Fred asked. "Where did it even come from?"

"It was delivered a few weeks ago." Wesley said. "It is a real document, I am sure of that. I have no reason to believe it's false."

"And you were working on it and didn't tell us?" Gunn asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I didn't know what it was about. I wasn't sure and I didn't seem it vital to upset everyone." Wesley justified his actions to Gunn.

Gunn looked back out at Angel and Connor, then back to Wesley and Fred. "Well, now we've got to upset Angel."

Wesley's office fell silent as Fred, Wesley, and Gunn all avoided eye contact with each other. None of them wanted to be the bearer of bad news to Angel because it didn't make sense to any of them. They all knew how much Angel loved Connor and not one of them could believe he would ever hurt his own son, yet the words were still on Wesley's desk, as clear as daylight.

Cordelia arrived back at her apartment, happy that she and Groo were able to jump on the next available flight back to L.A. She fumbled, bringing her luggage in as Groo followed behind her with his own bags. She barely made it into the front door before she felt sick again, lucky for her Dennis had opened the bathroom door for her just in time. She was thankful she had a ghost.

When Cordelia was finished throwing up the little food she had eaten on the plane, she sat back against the wall, taking a deep breath. A moment later she felt a cold rag on her forehead and she knew her friendly ghost was close by.

"Thank you, Dennis." She thanked the ghost silently.

"Did you say something, princess?" Groo's voice rang into the bathroom as the warrior made his presence known.

"Fine." Cordelia said, even though she wasn't fine. She felt like crap and she had no clue why. She knew she shouldn't be throwing up as much as she was, and she knew she wasn't really sick because she would feel fine one minute then sick the next then fine again. It didn't add up.

"You should not be sick like this. You have hardly eaten anything." Groo stated matter-of-factly.

"I know." Cordelia sighed, closing her eyes and letting the wet rag cool her face down.

"Can I get you anything?" Groo asked.

"Actually…" Cordelia removed the rag slowly. "Can you go down the street and pick me up some pizza? You do remember what a pizza place is, right?" Cordelia had brought Groo to the pizza place down the street the second night he was in L.A. She hoped he would remember it because for some reason she was really in the mood for pizza.

Groo nodded. "I remember, princess, but is pizza a good idea right now?"

"Yeah, it will be fine. Please? Just go get it?" Cordelia asked, wanting the pizza and wanting some time to herself from Groo.

Groo nodded. "Of course."

Cordelia waited to hear the door close behind Groo before she slowly stood, making her way to her bedroom and allowing herself to collapse on top of the bed. She had not even been on her bed for two minutes before the vision hit her.

She could see it all, crystal clear, and yet it was still too bright to make out the images, and her vision made her feel light. Whatever she was seeing, it felt right, and comfortable. Once the light seemed to dim from her eyes, she realized what her vision was of. Her vision was of her, in the hotel lobby. She was holding a baby in her arms, and another toddler, whose face she could not see was curled up on the couch next to her. The lobby did not seem changed, so she assumed that this image was sometime in the near future. Cordelia watched herself, smiling down at the baby, but her smile was sad. Something wasn't right. Suddenly, Cordelia felt her heart go heavy; the sadness that was present in her vision was now present in her. The version of herself in her vision was upset about something.

Cordelia snapped out of her vision as quickly as she had entered it, and a half a second later she realized what she had just seen, and why she had just seen it. She looked down at her stomach, her eyes wide with knowledge and fear.

"I'm pregnant." Cordelia said out loud to no one but herself and Dennis.

She thought about the words she had just said, still sitting in shock from her vision, the vision of her with the child inside of her and another child. She didn't need to take a test, she knew it was true. She was having a baby; the Power had just shown her. None of it made sense and all of it made sense at the same time. She was going to be a mother. Mother, the word hit her hard, not because she was afraid of it but because it was usually accompanied by another word-father.

Cordelia felt the blood drain from her face. Only one person could be the father of her child, and he shouldn't even technically be able to father a child. She laughed at that, he shouldn't be able to and yet he had; now he had done it twice. Angel. Angel was the father without a doubt. Angel was the only person Cordelia had slept with in over two years. Not once on the entire vacation had she come even close to touching Groo, let alone sleeping with him. There was no way anyone but Angel was the baby's father.

Cordelia laughed at her thought. "It wasn't even Angel, it was just his body." She looked down at her stomach. "Damn spirits." Then another thought hit Cordelia. How was she going to tell Angel? How would he react? Would he be happy or miserable? Did he even want another baby or was Connor enough? Most importantly, was she enough?

Cordelia knew she was no Buffy, no Darla, hell she wasn't even naturally blonde, although now, after her vacation and a bet gone bad that she had made with the bellboy at the hotel, she was at least a fake blonde. Still, Cordelia was not sure how Angel felt about her. She knew now, after her trip with Groo, and after her vision from the Powers that Angel was more than a friend to her. Somewhere, sometime, something had happened, she didn't know when or how, but she knew it in her bones. She loved Angel.

She stood, moving to grab her purse, and jotting down a note for the Groosalugg, before making her way out of her apartment. She had to get to the hotel, she had to tell Angel he was about to be a father again.

Angel was still sitting on the couch with Connor when he realized that Gunn, Wesley, and Fred had been in Wesley's office for quite some time now. He looked down at his son, who was paying with a pair of fake car keys.

"Come on, Connor." Angel stood, as Connor's head shot up over his father's shoulder. "Let's go see what Uncle Wes and Uncle Gunn and Aunt Fred are talking about."

Angel made his way into Wesley's office, and when he opened the door he caused Fred, Wesley, and Gunn to all jump ten feet in the air each. "Sorry." He apologized.

"It's fine. We're fine. It's fine." Fred stammered.

Angel raised an eyebrow. "So that means it's not fine."

"Its…well…" Wesley swallowed hard.

"Guys? What's wrong?" Angel laughed nervously. "Come on, it's me."

"We know, man." Gunn said gently. "We…uh…we have something we kinda gotta tell you."

"Okay." Angel said.

"Here." Fred reached for Connor, feeling guilty for wanting to get the child away from his own father. "Let me take him."

Angel gave Connor up willingly, not understanding he may never get the chance to hold his son again. "What's going on?"

"Well…I…" Wesley stammered and then gained control. He knew he had to do this, he had to tell Angel. "I found a prophecy."

"Okay?" Angel searched for more from Wesley.

"We think it's about you." Gunn answered for Wesley.

"What's it say?" Angel asked.

"Here." Wesley said, handing Angel the prophecy.

Angel read the words in front of him, and felt his face go a shade paler then it already was. He read the paper a few times over, soaking in all of the words, soaking in what he was prophesized to do to his own son. He finally handed the paper back to Wesley. "You're sure?"

Wesley nodded. "I could look it over again." He said quickly.

Angel shook his head, swallowing hard as his eyes sadly fell onto Connor who was still playing with the fake keys. "No. You're sure about this?"

"Yes." Wesley nodded sadly. He had no reason not to be sure. He was unaware that the prophecy was just part of Wolfram and Hart, and Holtz' plan to get Angel away from Connor. If he had known that, Wesley would have been at Holtz' throat himself.

Angel nodded sadly. "Then I need to pack. I need to get out of here. I need to get away from Connor."

Before anyone could stop him, Angel was half way up the stairs.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 5**

Angel felt like he was moving in slow motioned as he took out a handful of shirts from his closet. The prophecy that Wesley had just shown him had made the vampire feel lightheaded. It said he would kill Connor, his own son, his flesh and blood. He couldn't allow that to happen, he had to get out of the hotel, out of L.A. He would rather Connor grow up away from him, then not grow up at all because of him.

Angel reached for another shirt, and this one hit him as hard as the prophecy. It was a dark red button down shirt. The color of blood, and it had been given to him by Cordelia for his birthday. He held the shirt, staring at it for another minute. Cordelia. She was still away, and he might never get the chance now to see her again. He knew he would never get the chance to tell her he loved her. Frustrated, he threw the shirt across the room. He would not be taking it with him.

A knock on the door disrupted the vampire. "What?"

Gunn slowly entered the room. "How you doing?"

Angel glared at his friend, implying there was no need to answer that question.

"Angel, you don't have to leave forever. You know that, right?" Gunn asked. "I mean, this prophecy might not even be true."

"What if it is?" Angel said simply.

"Well, that's why you go now. If we find anything else out we will call you, let you know when to come back." Gunn said.

Angel shook his head. "I'm not risking Connor's life. I want him to grow up to be strong and proud of what he is."

"And he will. Whether he is with you or us, he will know where he came from." Gunn said. "And once we find a way around this prophecy you'll be back here."

"There might not be a way around it." Angel said simply.

"Now you sound like Wes. Doesn't anybody have faith in this place?" Gunn seemed angry.

"I've been around far too long to not believe in his prophecy and Wesley has dealt with his fair share of them. The chances of this one being false…" Angel sighed. "I just can't hurt Connor."

"Where are you going to go?" Gunn finally asked.

Angel shrugged. "Away from here."

Gunn nodded and then silently moved next to Angel, helping the vampire pack up his few belonging that he was going to take with him on his unknown excursion.

Lilah sat in her office, an accomplished smile on her face, as she waited for Holtz' arrival. Security had informed her that the vampire-hunter was on his way up the stairs and should arrive shortly. Finally, the door swung open and Holtz made his way over to her desk.

"How are you today?" Lilah grinned at Holtz.

"You tell me." Holtz said simply. "You called me down."

"Angel's crew bought the bait. They really think he is going to kill Connor." Lilah leaned back in her chair.

"And…" Holtz wanted more details, he needed to know.

"He is skipping town. Out of here for good." Lilah said.

"And the child?" Holtz asked.

"Staying with the Brady Bunch I suppose." Lilah referred to the rest of the Fang Gang. "But that's not important. What is important is that Angel is now going to be on his own running away from what he is. It's the ideal time to find him and…"

"Kill him." Holtz cut in.

"Or bring him back here." Lilah said. She knew the Senior Partners wanted to release Angelus, but she also knew she couldn't tell Holtz that because all he wanted was Angel to die. "To torture him of course."

Holtz nodded. "I will follow him then. Make him pay for what he has done."

Lilah nodded, knowing that is exactly what the Senior Partners wanted Holtz to do. Then, once Angel was brought back to Wolfram and Hart, Holtz would be killed and Angelus would finally be released to massacre half the country, just as the Senior Partners intended for him to do.

Cordelia sat at a light, drumming her fingers on her steering wheel and waiting for the light to change. She was only a few blocks from the hotel now, and she was starting to get nervous. She didn't know how she was going to approach the subject of her newfound pregnancy with Angel.

"I don't know what your dad is going to think about you." Cordelia looked down at her still thin stomach. She silently wondered how long it would take before she started to show.

"He might be happy but he is probably going to be confused." She continued talking to her unborn child. "But hey, at least you have an older brother, so daddy has done this before." She thought of Connor and how much he had slowly become like her own child. She loved him as much as she loved the newly discovered life inside of her.

The light changed and Cordelia took a deep breath before tapping on the gas and making her way toward the Hyperion Hotel, unaware of the turmoil she was about to walk into.

Angel rushed down the stairs with his bag in hand and Gunn a step behind him. He had packed everything up in less than an hour. When he got down to the library he found Wesley and Lorne leaning by the counter and Fred on the round couch, with Connor in her arms.

Angel felt his eyes well up as he looked at his son, maybe for the last time, he wanted to reach out to Connor, to hold him and inhale the smell of his baby shampoo one more time but he didn't out of fear. He couldn't bear the thought of hurting Connor.

"Angel." Lorne's voice drew the vampire away from Connor. "I can read you if you want."

"Huh?" Angel was confused; he was only half listening to Lorne.

"We thought if Lorne read you, maybe he could see why this was going to happen or when." Wesley explained.

"Or if it will happen at all." Fred added quickly.

"Right. I mean it's way out of my league but.,." Lorne warned. "I'll do it if you want."

Angel shook his head. "No. I don't want to get anyone's hopes up. Plus, what if you read me wrong?" Angel looked to Lorne who looked down. "You shouldn't have that burden. If there is a way to fix this I trust you guys will do it. I trust I'll be back here."

"Where are you going to go?" Fred asked, bouncing Connor more to keep herself calm then the baby.

"I'm not sure. Far enough to not hurt him, but close enough to be back when I can be." Angel's eyes drifted back to his son. A moment passed before he looked away. "I should get going."

"Here." Fred handed Connor to Angel. "Hold him for a second, it might be awhile until you can again."

Angel hesitated for a second and then reached out for Connor, scooping his son up in his arms, maybe for the last time. He inhaled the scent of Connor, so he would never forget it no matter what happened. After a few minutes of silence, Angel spoke again. "I really should go."

Just then the door to the hotel swung open, and a blonde-haired, out of breath Cordelia came barging in. "Go where?"

Fred, Lorne, Gunn, and Wesley all looked at each other and then quickly made their way into Wesley's office. They all knew Angel needed alone time with Cordelia to explain everything.

Angel stood, staring at Cordelia, and holding Connor. If he had breath, Angel knew the image of Cordelia would have made him lose it. She looked amazing, she was glowing. He was so busy taking in her image that he forgot she had asked him a question.

"Angel?" Cordelia asked again. "Where are you going?"

Angel snapped out of his trance, allowing reality to hit him. "I need to leave."

"What?" Cordelia took another step toward him. "What do you mean?"

"There was a prophecy." Angel explained, and then pushed Connor toward Cordelia. "Take him."

Cordelia nodded, gathering Connor in her arms. "What prophecy?"

"About me with Connor." Angel moved to the couch, gathering up his bags. "It said I was going to kill Connor."

"What?" Cordelia's eyes grew wide.

Angel stood up straight, angry about the words he was about to repeat. "It said I would kill Connor. That the father would kill the son. Me killing Connor." Angel shook his head. "I have to go."

"Where?" Cordelia reached out, grabbing Angel's arm.

"Not sure." Angel seemed to relax once Cordelia's hand touched him. "I just have to go. And you have to promise me something."

"What?" Cordelia understood why Angel was leaving, and she would do anything for him right now.

"Take care of Connor for me. Please. I trust you with him. I know you love him, and I know I am asking a lot out of you to take him but you're all he has…" Angel hesitated for a moment and then added. "You're all I have."

"Angel, you know you didn't even have to ask." Cordelia looked down at Connor and then remember why she had rushed over to the hotel in the first place. She looked back up to see Angel picking up his bag and making his way toward the door. "Angel, wait! I have to tell you something."

"You're pregnant." Angel told her.

Cordelia was in shock. "How did you know?"

"I heard the heartbeat when you came in the door." Angel told her, and then gave a weak smile. "Tell Groo congratulations."

Cordelia was still in shock for a moment, and then she realized what Angel had said. "No! Angel! Groo…" She wanted to explain to him that the child inside of her was not the Groosalugg nor did she love the Pylean warrior, she wanted to tell Angel she loved him and was carrying his baby.

"Cordy. I'm happy for you." Angel told her. "But I have to go. Make sure Connor knows I love him. That I will always love him no matter what." And with that, Angel made his way out of the Hyperion Hotel, not turning back once for fear of losing himself. He couldn't bear to see Cordelia or Connor's faces as he made his way to his car, avoiding the sunlight.

Wesley, Fred, Lorne, and Gunn all stood in Wesley's office. They had watched Angel leave, and now they were watching Cordelia stand in shock with Connor in her arms. Whatever Angel had told her had definitely shaken the seer.

"Okay, so who goes out to see if Barbie is okay?" Gunn asked.

"Does she look okay?" Lorne motioned to Cordelia. "Her best friend just walked out on her and left her his son." Lorne wasn't sure, but he felt as though Angel was more than just a best friend to Cordelia now. He had picked those vibes up the minute the seer had walked in the door.

"Well someone needs to check on her." Fred said.

"I'll do it." Wesley felt obligated, considering he had known Cordelia the longest out of them all.

No one would objected to Wesley's offer and they all followed the ex-watcher out into the lobby where Cordelia stood in shock, with Connor in her arms and tears threatening her eyes.

"Cordelia?" Wesley called out gently.

The seer turned slowly at the sound of her own name to see Wesley, Fred, Gunn, and Lorne all standing behind her.

"Cordelia, are you alright?" Wesley asked even though he knew she wasn't. How could she be?

"I'm pregnant." Cordelia said pointblank.

Fred, Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne all took a minute to react from Cordelia's comment.

"Here, Cordy…" Fred reached out for Connor and motioned to the couch. "Sit down."

Cordelia shook her head fiercely, clutching Connor. She was not about to let him go. He was all she had left of Angel, Connor and the new baby inside of her.

"So…you're pregnant." Gunn said slowly.

Cordelia nodded, continuing to clutch Connor and fight back tears.

"Does Groo know?" Gunn asked again. He couldn't tell if Cordelia was upset that Angel had left or at the fact that she was pregnant.

"It's not Groo's." Cordelia said simply.

"What?" Fred asked. "Then who's…"

"It's Angel's." Lorne said matter-of-factly. He had sensed it the minute Cordelia and Angel had walked back in from the ballet. This was that bond he had felt, this was the thing they would share for eternity; a child.

Cordelia nodded. "Yeah."

"What? How?" Gunn asked.

"The ballet." Cordelia said simply. "Spirits came and took us over and me and Angel we…" She wiped up the one tear that had fallen down her cheek.

The room was silent for a moment, then Wesley spoke up. "Does Angel know?"

"He knows I am pregnant." Cordelia said, smiling gently at Connor. "But he doesn't know it's his. He thought it was Groo's. I never got the chance to explain it to him. He left too quickly."

"And clearly I didn't return from Pylea quick enough." The Groosalugg's voice was stone cold as he stepped out of the shadows. He glared at Cordelia. "You carry Angel's child, yet claimed to have loved me."

Cordelia could not control her tears, as her world seemed to spiral farther and farther out of control with each passing second.

"Not right now Groo." Gunn stepped up, ready to defend Cordelia.

"Not ever again." Groo said simply, still glaring at Cordelia. "Enjoy your life, princess. I wish you well." And with that Groo turned and walked out of the hotel.

Cordelia took a deep breath, drawing everyone's attention back to her.

"I think I'm going to take Connor and lie down." Was all Cordelia could manage out. "It's been a long afternoon." She then silently took Connor up the stairs and into Angel's room. She needed to feel like he was still with her, and his room was the only place she would really feel that.

Once Cordelia was out of sight, Gunn turned back to the rest of the group. "I don't think things could have gotten any crazy for her then they did right now."

Lorne nodded. "She is in for one hell of a ride. Pregnant with a vampire's child and left to raise his first miracle baby. She is going to need all of us."

"That's what we are here for." Wesley stated and Fred nodded in agreement, knowing Cordelia had a bumpy road ahead of her.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 6**

Cordelia managed to make it into Angel's door and close the door completely before she really let everything hit her, before she let herself get lost in her tears. She sprawled out on the bed with Connor tightly in her arms and let the tears fall silently until she had none left to cry. She then looked down at Connor who was wide awake but silent, as if he could sense her sorrow.

"Oh baby…" Cordelia let a few more tears fall for Connor. "You don't even know what you've lost. Your Daddy loves you so much…"

Connor slightly smiled, not really understanding Cordelia's words, he grabbed for her hair.

Cordelia laughed sadly at Connor's action. "You're going to be a big brother soon." She looked down at her stomach, smiled, and then continued talking to Connor. "And just because your daddy isn't around right now doesn't mean you don't have family. We're all we've got now, Connor. Me, you, and this new baby. We're going to be a family."

Connor seemed to be getting bored with Cordelia's words and climbed out of her lap, sprawling himself out on Angel's bed and sucking his thumb.

The image of Connor on the bed made Cordelia's thoughts drift off. She wondered if she could care for Connor and this new baby like a mother should. In the type of world she lived in, with demons, and vampires, and visions she was not sure that her children would have a safe world to grow up in, and that was what she considered Connor now. He was as much her son as the baby inside of her was her own child, and she was the only one left for him now, even with Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne around, Cordelia knew her place was now going to be to bring Connor up. She just hoped she was up to the task.

All of the thoughts rushing through Cordelia's mind were making the expecting mother tired. She lay down next to Connor, wrapping her arms protectively around the child. As she dosed off, something in the corner of the room caught her eye, something red. She took a closer look and realized it was the shirt she had given Angel not too long ago. Her eyes welled again, and she moved quickly, gather the shirt in her arms and slipping her thin frame into it. The shirt fell on her like a dress, but she didn't seem to mind. She then lay back down next to Connor, inhaling the scent of Angel's aftershave that was still on the shirt.

Angel drove along the highway in silence. He was outside of L.A. now and still not sure where he was headed. His mind was heavy with all that had taken place that afternoon. He had found out only hours ago that there was a good chance he would kill his son, and then, to top things off, he found out the woman he loved was pregnant.

"Damn Groosalugg." Angel grunted to himself. Even in all of his turmoil, Angel found time to be jealous. He really felt like Cordelia was his. He loved her. He knew that now, he just wished he had gotten the chance to tell her.

"At least Connor will have a real family, and will be safe." Angel said out loud as an afterthought. Cordelia would take Connor on as her own son, and Angel was sure Groo would do the noble thing and try and include Connor into his family. Angel also knew that it would be good for Connor to have some sort of sibling, even if he and Cordelia's baby were not related. Angel truly had no idea that Cordelia was carrying his child, not Groo's.

After a few moments Angel banged his hand hard against his steering wheel and looked up at the sky, toward the Powers That Be. "Why the hell are you doing this to me? I've done nothing but what you've asked of me and this is the thanks I get? You give me a son so I can kill him?"

Angel felt his face transform to its demon features and knew there was only one person who could really help him at this point. He sighed at the thought of making the trip to Sunnydale, that was the last place he wanted to go, but Giles was the only guy he knew could help him. He grunted as he turned his car around and made his way back down the familiar roads that he had traveled less and less over the last few years.

Gunn, Wesley, Lorne, and Fred sat around the lobby, all drained from that afternoon's events. Between the prophecy, Angel's sudden departure, and Cordelia's unexpected news, they had their hands full.

"So now what?" Fred finally asked.

"What do you mean?" Gunn gently threw an arm around his now girlfriend.

"I mean, what do we do? We have no champion, a pregnant seer, and a baby that every evil thing is after." Fred explained.

"Two babies that every evil thing is and will be after." Wesley corrected. "Connor was in danger because he was the child of two vampires, now Cordelia's baby is the child of a vampire and part demon, a champion and a seer. Don't you think that will drum up some attention?"

"Damn right it will." Gunn realized. "And how the hell are we going to protect any of them? We aren't no demons, we ain't Angel."

"Well, we had better figure it out." Lorne said. "Because _when _Angel comes back and realizes all that has happened while he was gone he is going to want to know his whole family is safe."

"Angel might not be coming back." Wesley said. "Realistically, the chances of that prophecy being proven false…"

"Shut up, Wes." Gunn snapped suddenly. "Lorne's right. Angel will be back, and he will want to know his family is safe."

Wesley nodded, not wanting to upset anyone else, although in his heart of hearts he knew, even if the prophecy was proven false, there was very little chance Angel would come back, simply out of fear that he _might_ hurt Connor.

"Look, someone should keep an eye on Cordelia." Gunn said. "I don't think she should go back to her apartment. It's not safe for her anymore, especially with our champion out of town."

Lorne had to laugh at Gunn. "Yeah, and Cordelia is really going to listen to that."

Gunn looked at Lorne, confused.

"You know our girl. You tell her one thing, she does the other. That's our Cordy." Lorne explained. "You really think she isn't going to go back to her apartment because you tell her it's not safe?"

Gunn sighed. "Valid point." He knew exactly what Lorne was talking about. That was the way Cordelia had been since the day he had met her and he knew she was not about to change overnight. He just knew they had to watch out for her, just until Angel came back. He also knew that wouldn't be an easy task.

Holtz sat in the cave he had decided to call home from now on. He had gotten rid of all of his demon workers, and every other nonhuman he had been associated with. There was no need for any of them at this point. Angel was gone, away from L.A. and now Holtz knew he could hunt Angel down, there was no one to help him fight if he was on his own.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the boulder of a door Holtz had established for himself. He stood, moving to the door and opening it wide. He found Lilah on the other side.

"Ms. Morgan." Holtz motioned for her to come in. "How can I help you?"

Lilah slide past Holtz, her arms folded. She seemed somewhat annoyed. "You killed every demon we gave you, and stuck that Sahjhan in a vase."

"I was no longer in need of any of their assistance. I have Angelus right where I want him. Far away from the few humans who actually care about him." Holtz said, walking past Lilah, back to his table.

"That's not how it works. We kept up our end of the deal; we helped you find Angel and gave you the means and way to bring him into us, so now you have to keep up on your end." Lilah said.

"And I will." Holtz smiled slyly. "I can't promise he will be conscious, but you will have Angelus back to your office soon enough."

"When?" Lilah asked, knowing the Senior Partner's were growing impatient with Holtz. They wanted Angel, and they wanted him now.

"Soon enough." Holtz grinned again. "I promise." And he did, he was ready to go after Angel, he just needed to make some last minute stops and check up to make sure certain things would not get in the way of stopping him from getting to Angel.

Cordelia woke up to a constantly little nudge on the side of her face. She opened her eyes to see Connor smiling at her, hitting her cheek with his fist. He stopped when he saw her eyes open, and tried to roll closer to her, although not too successfully.

Cordelia lifted Connor and put him on her flat stomach, knowing it wouldn't stay flat like that much longer. She gently kissed him on the top of his head. "Sleep good, baby?"

Connor relaxed, resting his head on her breast.

Cordelia took another glance around Angel's dark bedroom. She couldn't believe he was gone. A lonely feeling filled her heart at the idea of raising both of his children without him; and she couldn't even begin to imagine the pain he was in, knowing there was a chance he could have hurt Connor.

After a moment, Cordelia stood, Connor on her hip. She was still wearing Angel's shirt which she had fallen asleep in, but she didn't care. She needed to get out of that room and away from the hotel for a little. She needed time to sort everything out.

"Come on, sweetie." Cordelia moved toward the door. "Let's go home." She then quickly made her way down the stairs to find Fred and Gunn sitting on the couch, and Wesley and Lorne behind the counter in the lobby. All four heads turned when she entered.

"Cordelia." Wesley nodded at her, trying hard not to cast his eyes on Angel's shirt which Cordelia was clearly wearing. He did not want to draw attention to it, although it was hard to miss, hanging on Cordelia's thin frame; a frame that wouldn't be thin much longer, he assumed. "Feel better?"

Cordelia shrugged, gathering Connor's diaper bag. "I slept. He slept." She motioned to Connor. "But what does that really change?"

"Cordy, if there is a way to get Angel back, we are going to find it." Fred told the pregnant woman.

Cordelia nodded, but said nothing, shifting Connor and moving toward the door.

Gunn was the first to react. "Where are you going, Cordy?"

Cordelia turned back to Gunn, a little confused by his sudden interest. "Home."

"Alone?" Gunn inquired.

"With Connor." Cordelia motioned to the child in her arms.

"You really think that's a good idea?" Gunn asked.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Cordelia didn't like the game of twenty-one questions she felt like she was playing.

"Well, I mean, you are pregnant, and now you have Connor…" Gunn started.

"Gunn, I just found out I was pregnant, it's not like I am going to pop this second. Plus, lots of pregnant woman are in their homes by themselves with their other children." And what was what Cordelia now considered Connor. He was her son.

"Yeah, but lots of other woman don't have the child of two vampires with them, and a baby of a vampire inside of them." Lorne added, although he knew it was useless. He had said it before, Cordelia had a mind of her own, and she was not about to change for anyone.

"I can't stay here anymore." Cordelia looked around the lobby. It was Angel's, all of it. Every corner, every light, every ding in the wall was his and reminded her of him. She needed to get away from it for a little while. "I just…I need some time."

"Understandable." Fred nodded to the seer. "But maybe someone should go home with you."

"Guys." Cordelia tried to smile. "I will be fine. I have Connor with me."

"Cordelia, what if something happens?" Gunn asked.

"It won't." Cordelia tried to assure him.

"But what if it does?" Gunn pressed, getting frustrated with Cordelia. "What if something happens? Who is going to save you? Angel…" Gunn stopped, knowing he didn't want to finish his sentence.

Cordelia's face was stone cold at Gunn's mention of Angel. "What? Angel what? Angel's gone? The champion is not here? So now all the damsels are screwed? Is that what you're saying?"

"Cordy…I just…" Gunn started.

"Look, Angel is not gone. He will be back once we fix this, okay? And we will find a way to fix that prophecy." Cordelia looked at Wesley. "So this is only temporary. Until then, we go about things like we would if he was here. He answer visions, we take cases, we…"

"But he's not here." Fred reasoned. "We can't do some of that stuff without him."

"Well, we don't have a choice, so the faster we find a way around that stupid prophecy the better!" Cordelia snapped, feeling her hormones already beginning to rage.

"Fine. You're right." Gunn put his hands up in defeat, not wanting to upset Cordelia anymore. It had already been a crazy day.

"I'm going home now." Cordelia informed them. "I am taking Connor, and I am going. We'll be back tomorrow."

"Okay. Fine." Gunn nodded.

Cordelia didn't wait for anyone else's approval as she turned and made her way out of the hotel with Connor in one arm, and his diaper bag in the other.

"Damn…" Gunn shook his head, once Cordelia was out of sight.

"I told you she wouldn't listen." Lorne reminded Gunn.

Gunn nodded. "I know. But still…it doesn't feel right leaving her alone right now."

"Well, maybe she does need time away from here, away from reminders of Angel." Fred said.

"Well, if that's the case, she is doing a really good job, I mean she is only wearing his shirt, taking care of his son, and carrying his new child." Gunn said sarcastically.

"Maybe she needs time away from us then." Wesley offered. "Maybe she needs time alone with the things that are Angel to her, which would be that baby and Connor. Whatever the case may be, she is right, we need to try and work a way around his prophecy."

Fred, Gunn, and Lorne all nodded in agreement with Wesley and followed the ex-watcher into his office to go over the papers and see if there was something they could do. They all felt it in their bones, L.A. wasn't safe without Angel, and they were all lost without their champion.

Angel pulled up to the familiar house, hoping his car would not be spotted by anyone he didn't want to see him, which in Sunnydale was a lot of people. He had contemplated turning back and figuring things out on his own all the way up to Giles' driveway, but now that he sat on the old watcher's property he knew he could not turn back. He also knew that if anyone could help me sort this all out it would be Giles. He just hoped he didn't have to see any of the Scooby members. He did not want to be dragged back into anything.

Angel shut is car off and made his way to the front door, hoping Giles was home alone. After a second he knocked, and a moment later the door swung open, Giles standing there with a cup of tea.

When Giles saw Angel, however, he almost dropped that tea. "Angel?" He was clearly surprised.

Angel nodded. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." Giles stepped aside, and then, after Angel had walked in and he had shut the door he realized he could have just trapped himself inside with Angelus.

As if he could read the old man's mind, Angel turned to Giles. "And don't worry. It's me. Not Angelus."

Giles nodded, taking Angel for his word. What else could he really do? "Why are you here Angel?"

"I need help." Angel said pointblank.

Giles nodded, motioning for Angel to take a seat as he sat down across from the vampire. "With what?"

"A prophecy." Angel said simply. "One involving me and my son."

Giles nodded. He had heard all about Angel's son from Buffy. Buffy had tried to act like the fact that Angel had slept with Darla had not bothered her, but Giles knew her better. It had practically killed the slayer. "Well, what kind of prophecy?"

"It said I was going to kill him." Angel rushed out.

Giles looked taken back, and Angel realized he should explain himself better.

"Wesley found it. It said 'The Father Will Kill The Son'. Wes didn't know what to do with it so he told me, and I left." Angel said. "I didn't know what else to do."

"If you felt like you were putting your son in danger you did the right thing." Giles said.

"But I don't know if I was. I didn't feel like I was. I would never hurt Connor, but I didn't want to chance it." Angel explained.

Giles nodded. "I see. So what do you need help with?"

"I need to know if its true. If I would really ever hurt Connor…" Angel asked.

"Well…" Giles fixed his glasses. "Wesley is good at what he does. If he translated it I wouldn't doubt that it was true."

"I know. But he has been wrong before." Angel remembered the whole Shanshu thing a few years earlier.

"Do you think he's wrong?" Giles asked.

Angel shrugged. "I need to know. I wanted you to look at them."

Giles nodded. "Very well. I will put in a call tomorrow to Wesley."

"Wait!" Angel said. "Before you do I need you to do two things for me."

"What?" Giles asked, seeing Angel was serious.

"Don't tell Buffy or anyone I am here." Angel said. "And don't tell Wesley I am here either. I don't want them to worry about me here, and I don't really want to have to deal with Buffy right now. I have enough on my mind."

Giles nodded, understanding. Angel seemed to have matured a great deal since the last time he had seen the vampire. He could tell the souled-demon was in pain and needed time alone, and Giles would not take that from Angel. He would keep his presence in Sunnydale a secret for as long as Angel needed it to be.

Cordelia shuffled into her apartment with Connor on her hip. It was dark and she could not see where she was putting down his diaper bag when suddenly the lights flicked on. Cordelia looked around, realizing it was Dennis.

"Thanks, Dennis." Cordelia spoke to her ghost as she placed Connor's diaper bag down on the couch. Connor wiggled in her arms, wanting to be set free to explore the apartment. Cordelia complied, placing the child on the floor and knowing very well he was not able to crawl yet. He had just started getting his chest off the ground.

Cordelia then moved into the kitchen, quickly turning on a light, but all the while keeping her eye on Connor who was lying on the floor. He had found his hand fascinating and was now engaged in looking at it. Cordelia smiled at the child, he was so innocent, he had no idea how much his life had already been screwed with.

Suddenly a small whiteboard appeared in front of Cordelia with the words 'Why is Connor here?' written on it. It was Dennis' only way of communicating with the seer.

Cordelia gave her ghost a sad smile. "Angel is gone, so Connor is staying with me now."

A minute later the board had something new written on it. "Where is Angel?"

"There was a prophecy, it said Angel would kill Connor." Cordelia really didn't feel like telling the story over as she made her way into the living room, gathering Connor up in her one arm as she balanced his bottle in the other. "So Angel left."

"You're upset?" Dennis' asked through the board.

"I'm pregnant." Cordelia told her ghost. "It's Angel's, so yeah I am upset. I'm having his baby and he doesn't even know." Cordelia shook her head. "What am I going to do?"

Dennis' board appeared a minute later. "You're going to do the best you can."

Cordelia smiled at the board, running her hand through the small amount of hair that Connor had as the child leaned into her, drinking from his bottle.

"Connor is lucky to have you." The board then said.

"Thanks Dennis." Cordelia smiled at the ghost, and she meant it. It was the nicest thing anyone had said to her all day. After a moment, she stood, taking Connor in her arms. He had finished his bottle. "I'm going to get him to bed, and then I think I am going to shower and go to bed myself." Cordelia told her ghost.

"I'll watch him while you shower." Dennis' board read.

"Thanks." Cordelia said, moving down to her room to lay Connor on her bed. She would have to barracked him onto the bed with pillows tonight, and she would have to go out and get him a crib and some kind of a nursery set up in the room next to hers tomorrow because she knew there was no way she could live in that hotel if Angel wasn't there.

Holtz stood outside the window of Cordelia's house. He knew which apartment was hers, and had climbed up the tree outside her balcony to see what she was up to, out of curiosity more than anything. He could tell from the minute he had run into Angel in L.A. that out of all of the vampire's friends, Cordelia seemed to be the most attached to him, so Holtz assumed she would be the one most upset with his sudden departure. And he was right.

What he was astonished to find was that Cordelia was taking care of Connor as if she was the child's mother, and what flabbergasted about was the fact that Cordelia had just said she was pregnant with Angel's child. How could Angel, a vampire, manage to get another vampire and now a human pregnant with his children? It just didn't make sense to Holtz.

But what did make sense to Holtz was the problems he now faced. If Angel's children grew up, Holtz realized, they would just extend Angelus' bloodline. Holtz realized now that even if he destroyed Angel his life, his blood, his traits would still live on in his children. There now was no way to stop Angel's existence. Now Holtz found himself in somewhat of a crisis.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****7**

Angel opened his eyes, realizing he had forgotten to close the shades in the spare room Giles had set up for him. Another ten minutes and he would have been a pile of ash. He sighed, standing and stretching out. It had been over three weeks since he had left L.A. and so far Giles could not find one flaw in the prophecy from Wesley.

The day after Angel's arrival, Giles had called Wesley, making up a story that he had gotten a similar prophecy and wanted to compare notes. Wesley bought it and shipped the prophecy out the next day, saying he would need it back soon.

Giles had also complied with Angel's request and not mentioned his presence in Sunnydale to any of the scoobies, nor told Wesley Angel was staying in Sunnydale.

Angel lazily made his way into Giles' kitchen to find the old watcher bent over the prophecy with a cup of tea. "Anything new?"

Angel's voice stirred Giles, but not too much. The watcher had become acquired, over the last few weeks, Angel's presence not being signaled until he spoke. "No." The watcher sighed, leaning back.

Angel nodded. "I figured."

"Don't get discouraged." Giles could tell this whole situation was eating at Angel. "We will figure this out. Even if you have to go to the Powers."

"Yeah." Angel crossed his arms over his chest. "I just miss them."

"Your friends?" Giles asked, trying to make conversation. Never in all the years that he had known the vampire had Angel been so open with him.

"Well, yeah." Angel nodded. It was true, he did miss Fred, Gunn, Lorne, and Wesley, but that's not who he was talking about. "I miss them all. But especially Connor…"

"Well of course." Giles agreed. "He is your son."

"And Cordy." Angel added. He missed her so much. He had finally admitted it to himself, he was in love with her, completely, but now he had no chance. She was pregnant with another man's child, and by the time he made it back to L.A. there was a good chance she would be Connor's new mother. He wondered, if he ever did get back to L.A., if Connor would even want to come back with him, or if he would be too attached to Cordelia. Angel knew how infectious Cordelia's personality was, and he could see, if he was too return to L.A. eventually, how someone would not want to leave Cordelia's side. Angel decided right then and there that if he returned and Connor was already assimilated into Cordelia's new family he would not stop that.

"I understand you and Cordelia have grown extremely close." Giles said, remembering something Buffy had said about them a few months back.

Angel nodded. "She is my best friend. She's actually watching over Connor now. She is the closest thing he will ever have to a mother…"

"Cordelia?" For some reason, Giles could not picture Cordelia with a child.

Angel nodded, taking a seat across from the watcher. "She's pregnant."

"Cordelia?" Giles was shocked now.

"Yeah. The guy…he's a hero. Literally." Angel spoke of the Groosalugg, not knowing Cordelia was really carrying his child and that Groo was way out of the picture.

Giles nodded. Maybe Cordelia really had changed. He had heard she was part demon now. "That's good. Good for her. And lucky for Connor."

"Yeah. He's in good hands." Angel sighed. After a moment of silence he looked up at Giles. "This prophecy is for real, isn't it?"

Giles did not want to answer that question, he had been avoiding it for weeks, but he felt obligated to answer it now. "I think so."

Angel nodded, saying nothing.

"But I could be wrong." Giles said quickly.

"No." Angel stood. "You're not. Send that back to Wesley." He pointed to the scroll and made his way out of the kitchen.

"Where are you going?" Giles asked.

"Away from here." Angel said simply. "Thanks for everything Giles." He then turned and walked down the hall to gather his belongings. He had to get away from Sunnydale and he had to stay away from L.A. He did not want to risk hurting Connor. He was not sure where he was going, all he knew was he couldn't put the people he cared about in danger. If only he had known that the prophecy was a false one, created by Wolfram and Hart to drive him away from L.A. then maybe the vampire would have not been so quick on getting away from Los Angeles.

Cordelia found herself over the toilet for the second time that morning. Her morning sickness was terrible, but the doctor had assured her it would start to die off eventually. She had gone last week, and they had confirmed she was a little over a month and a half pregnant and already starting to show. She was even starting to have problems fitting into her jeans, since most of them were skintight to begin with, so she had been wearing a lot of sweatpants around now.

Once she was sure she was done being sick, she slowly stood, wiping her face and fixing her blonde hair before making her way back out to the living room of her apartment, where she had left Connor on the floor when the wave of sickness had hit her. She bent down and scooped Connor up.

"Come on, baby." She cooed at him. "Let's get going over to the hotel."

Connor looked at Cordelia as if he understood her and smiled.

She didn't know if it was her hormones or the fact that she desperately missed Angel, but that smile brought tears to Cordelia's eyes. It was exactly like Angel's. "Don't make me sad now." She smiled back at Connor, wiping the single tear making its way down her cheek. "Come on." She moved to the door and opened it, locking it behind her.

Cordelia then made her way down to her jeep, placing Connor in his baby seat. She had decided she was going to trade the jeep in at some point during that week. It didn't make sense to keep it, not when she had Connor and another baby on the way, it wasn't safe enough. She also had to consider the fact that she was about to gain a lot of baby weight, and climbing in and out of that jeep was not going to be pleasant.

Cordelia then made her way around the jeep and was about to climb in when she saw a familiar man standing a few yards up the sidewalk. Anger immediately rose within Cordelia, and she had the overwhelming urge to protect Connor. She quickly took him from his baby seat and made her way toward the man. He did not budge as she came closer.

"Holtz." Cordelia almost seemed to growl.

"Miss. Chase." Holtz nodded at her, his hands in his pockets.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Cordelia snapped.

"Just out for a stroll." Holtz smirked.

"Angel's gone." Cordelia said simply. "So you have no reason to be anywhere near me, my home, or my baby." Cordelia balanced Connor on her shoulder as she sensed he child's head shoot up at the tone of her voice.

"Oh, he's yours now?" Holtz nodded toward Connor.

"Damn right he is." Cordelia's didn't hesitate with that answer. Connor was hers now.

"Well then, I should congratulate you." Holtz said simply. "On the new one two." He pointed to Cordelia's hump of a belly before making his way past Cordelia and on down the street.

Cordelia stood there for a moment, fuming at Holtz presence. "That is a bad man, Connor." Cordelia said to the child as she made her way back to her jeep. She was upset and angry all at the same time. She just wanted to get to the hotel in one piece.

Lilah sat in her office, bored, and playing a card game on her computer. There had not been much activity in the office since Angel had left Los Angeles. She was currently waiting from word from Holtz to see where they were actually standing in regards to their Angel situation. She knew if they didn't make a move soon, someone was bound to realize the prophecy regarding Angel and Connor was false.

Truth was, Lilah was about ready to get rid of Holtz and go after Angel herself. The old man was taking too much time trying to get his revenge on the vampire, it was almost making Lilah sick.

She sighed, checking her watch. Holtz should have been there already. Suddenly, her door swung open and Gavin strolled into her office.

Lilah rolled her eyes. "What do you want?"

"Wanted to check in and see how everything with Holtz was going?" Gavin grinned, sitting on the edge of her desk.

"Fine." Lilah said. She was not about to let Gavin know that Holtz was not exactly cooperating.

"Really?" Gavin raised an eyebrow. "That's not what I heard…"

"And what did you hear, Gavin?" Lilah asked, not assumed by the other lawyer at all.

"That he is not really doing what you planned for him to." Gavin said. "Or what the Senior Partner's want him for. They are starting to get pretty ticked."

"They can join the club…" Lilah mumbled.

"Excuse me?" Gavin hadn't caught that.

"I am sure Holtz has his reasons for his actions." Lilah said through a tightlipped smile, though she doubted her own words. "So get out, Gavin."

"Fine…fine." Gavin stood. "If that's how you want it…" He made his way out of her office.

Once Gavin had left, Lilah let out a breath of frustration. She hoped she was right, and that Holtz did have a good reason for why he was avoiding her and what he had promised to do to Angel. If now, Lilah decided, then he was as good as dead.

Cordelia made her way through the front door of the Hyperion Hotel with Connor on her hip and his diaper bag in her other hand. She had gotten this mothering thing down pat over the past few weeks. She looked like she had been doing it her whole life. When she entered the lobby she found Fred and Lorne at the counter, both reading magazines.

"Hey…" Cordelia made her presence known as she placed Connor down on the rug. He was still working on crawling, but was getting better with each day. Cordelia gave the child until the end of the week and she was sure she would have to baby proof her apartment because he would be everywhere.

"Cordy." Fred smiled at the seer, noticing that Cordelia was in sweats and a tee-shirt that was too tight, barely making its way around the small bump that now took the place of what was once Cordelia's flat stomach. Fred was sure, in a week or so, Cordelia wouldn't fit in anymore of her clothes. "How are you?"

"Tired." Cordelia flopped herself down on the couch. "I'm still sick in the morning so that's been taking a lot of out me."

"Well you look good." Lorne told the visibly pregnant woman, however he was actually shocked at the weight she had put on already.

"I'm fat." Cordelia said pointblank, looking down at her expanding stomach. "Every day I wake up and another pair of pants doesn't fit."

Fred smiled. "Well maybe we should go shopping?" She wanted to get Cordelia out of the slump she seemed to be in. Sure, things were far from perfect for the seer right now and Fred knew that, even though Cordelia was doing her best to hide it. Fred figured shopping would perk Cordelia up, after all, the seer always loved to shop.

"Maybe." Cordelia shrugged, feeling Connor banging his fist against her leg. She bent over and picked the child up, trying to sit him in her lap the best she could with her stomach. "Another few weeks and you're going to have to find a new seat, buddy." Cordelia cooed at Connor. "Because your little brother or sister is going to be taking over my lap."

Connor turned to Cordelia, smiling, as if he understood what she was saying. He then turned back to the small stuffed dog he had in his hand.

"Well our Connor seems to be getting bigger by the day." Lorne noticed the child had definitely grown over the past few weeks. He was even starting to look more like Angel.

Cordelia nodded, running her hand over Connor's head. "He is getting his crawling thing under control. A few more weeks and I think he will be walking."

"Then you'll really have your hands full." Fred said.

Cordelia nodded. "Oh, I know." She smiled at Connor and then turned her attention back to Fred and Lorne. "Where is Wesley and Gunn?"

"Out on a case." Lorne said.

"The vision from last night?" Cordelia asked, recalling how she was bathing Connor when the attack of a young man at a park played through her head. Some kind of demon, she wasn't sure. She had called Wesley and informed him though.

Lorne shook his head. "We took care of that this morning. This one is a friend of mine. Some kind of demon is eating through his walls. Should be minor."

"Oh okay." Cordelia nodded, gazing back at Connor.

"Is something wrong?" Fred noticed how quiet Cordelia was.

Cordelia shrugged. "I just wanted to talk to Wesley about something."

"Well speak up then." Wesley came in, smiling, with Gunn behind him. The two men were covered in a green goo.

"Eww." Cordelia felt sick, between the way the goo looked and the smell of it, she was sure she would be puking her brains out in about five minutes flat.

"Sorry." Wesley realized the smell from his clothing was probably not helping the expectant mother's stomach sit well. "We'll stay over here."

"Yeah, don't need you throwing up." Gunn added. He knew how sick Cordelia had been over the past few weeks.

Cordelia nodded. "I needed to talk to you guys."

"Okay. What is it?" Wesley asked.

"Holtz was outside my apartment today." Cordelia said as she felt Connor wrap his hands around her neck and place his head on her breast.

"What?" Wesley was shocked.

Cordelia nodded. "I confronted him. He said he was just out walking but…"

"This is why I said for you not to stay there alone." Gunn said, recalling the conversation they had had over three weeks ago. "Because of these kind of things. You're apartment is not safe."

"It's not like he tried to break in." Cordelia rationalized. "He was actually kind of friendly. I just…I didn't like it. I don't like how he looks at Connor."

Wesley nodded. "It makes sense. Connor is all that is left of Angel now, beside the new baby, but he wouldn't know that's Angel's right?"

Cordelia put a hand over her belly protectively. "I try to keep that to myself."

Wesley felt stupid. Of course Cordelia would not want anyone to know that fact. It meant risking both her life and her baby's life. "Well then we will have to keep an eye on him. If he is after Connor…"

"If he is after Connor he is dead." Gunn said quickly. "No one is touching either one of Angel's kids." He felt like he needed to protect Connor, Cordelia, and the new baby. That's what Angel would have wanted.

Wesley nodded in agreement. "We will deal with Holtz." He assured Cordelia. "Not to worry."

Cordelia nodded, excepting Wesley's words as truth. Even if she had to take care of it herself, Holtz was not coming near her or her family. He was not taking the only things she had left of Angel. "Okay."

"Let us go shower." Wesley looked to Gunn. "Because this is disgusting." He felt so gross from all the goo.

Gunn nodded. "You go shower. I am gonna go out back and hose off and burn these clothes." And he was serious because he then made his way out the back door.

"I'll go make sure he doesn't actually burn the clothes. We don't need the fire department here." Fred said quickly, following her boyfriend out the door.

Wesley shook his head at Gunn and Fred and then ascended the stairs to the shower in one of the spare rooms.

"So…" Lorne said slowly, watching Cordelia as she sat on the couch with her feet up, Connor resting on her chest, and her one hand wrapped around her growing stomach while the other held Connor near her. She looked so tired and so sad. It broke Lorne's heart. "How are you, really?"

Cordelia opened her eyes, turning her head to face the green demon at the counter. "Really?"

Lorne nodded. He wanted to know. He could tell she was hurting.

"I miss him." Cordelia said sadly. "I really miss Angel."

"We all do." Lorne told her.

Cordelia shook her head. She wanted to curse at Lorne for making her hormones rage out of control. She could feel the tears rising in her eyes. "This shouldn't be happening. He shouldn't be kept away from his son and I shouldn't be having his baby."

"But you are." Lorne told her. "For whatever reason you are."

"But he doesn't even know." Cordelia said sadly, rubbing her small hump of stomach. "He doesn't even know I love him."

"You'll get your chance to tell him."

"What if I don't?" Cordelia asked quickly. "What if he doesn't come back? Or worse yet, what if he comes back and has met someone else?"

"I can tell you something, Cordelia." Lorne said seriously. "That will never happen."

"You don't know that." Cordelia wiped up a stray tear.

"Yes I do." Lorne told her. "I know it because I know he loves you."

Cordelia snorted at Lorne's words. "Yeah right."

"He does. Trust me. The way you love him, he loves you. I could feel it. He cares about you like he cares about no one else." Lorne said. "Trust me."

Cordelia took Lorne's words to heart and nodded her head. "I just miss him so much." She felt the tears coming on strong now.

"I know." Lorne made his way around the counter, sitting on the couch next to Cordelia and pulling her in for a hug the best he could between her stomach and Connor. "I know you do." He then allowed the seer to cry on his shoulder. He didn't know what else he could really do for her.

Giles sat in on his couch quietly. Angel had left a few hours ago and the Watcher actually missed the vampire. He had been getting used to having Angel around his house over the past few weeks. He also felt horrible that he could not help Angel out.

"You tried…" Giles sighed, getting ready to place the prophecy Wesley had sent him back in the envelope he had addressed to the Hyperion Hotel when suddenly he noticed something.

"What the…" Giles pulled the paper away from the envelope, taking a closer look at the prophecy. Something was not right with it at all. Immediately, the watcher regretted letting Angel leave so suddenly.

Angel drove his car down the highway. It was glad Gunn had talked him into getting the heavily tinted windows when Connor was born. It made sense at the time, so he could travel with Connor during the day, but now he was grateful he had it to drive farther and farther from L.A. during all hours.

Sunnydale had been a bust. Angel had suspected it all along. The prophecy had to be true, even a Giles couldn't find a flaw in it. He knew now that he did not deserve to raise Connor. He did not deserve to love Cordelia. He deserved only pain and regret for all of his past actions. He had so much to atone for yet, how could he be stupid enough to think he would even get the slightest chance at happiness?

Angel looked at his phone, contemplating calling Cordelia to let her know he was really leaving. He was also curious to see how Connor was and how her pregnancy was going. He even was wondering about the Groosalugg.

"Just call her…" Angel said to himself out loud. "You love her, she doesn't know it. She is raising your son. She is your best friend. She deserves to know what is going on." He began dialing her familiar number, and then closed his cell phone suddenly, still talking to himself out loud. It was something he had always done go calm his nerves. "No, don't call her. It will only upset her, it might make you go back and try and hurt Connor or her."

Angel looked at his phone again and then chucked it on his passenger seat. He was not calling her. It was better that way. The faster she moved on with her life the better off she would be. Angel did not want to burden her anymore then he already had. He knew now he just needed to get away from L.A. and away from the woman who would never know he loved her and the son who would never get a chance to learn his father's love.

Holtz casually made his way into Lilah's office. He had a small smile on his face, knowing Lilah would be pleased to hear another one of Angel's spawn's was going to be born within the year. After all, she, as well as Wolfram and Hart, seemed to be so interested in Connor.

"Holtz." Lilah looked up when the man entered. She seemed rather annoyed.

"Good to see you." Holtz took a seat across from the lawyer. "Sorry I am late. I had some business to attend to." His thoughts drifted back to his run-in earlier with Cordelia and Connor.

"Well, I have been waiting for you for over an hour." Lilah was at her end. "And you never showed, so as far as I am concerned as well as the Senior Partner's you finish your contract with us or we finish you." She moved around the desk. "That means you get Angel, bring him back here, because _no_ we don't want him dead, we want Angelus. Then you find Angel's little brat of a son and bring him here because the Senior Partner's want that freak of nature to be examined thoroughly so we can see what the hell he is, and how the hell two vampires created a damn human baby."

"Angelus?" Holtz was taken back. "And Angel's child is to die."

"That's the plan." Lilah spat.

"The child is innocent!" Holtz suddenly felt himself defending Connor as he made his way around the desk to get in Lilah's face. "And you do not know what you're doing, releasing Angelus."

"Oh, I think we do." Lilah returned.

"I doubt that with every bone in my body." Holtz said, knowing he had made a mistake planting the false prophecy in the Hyperion Hotel now. Maybe Angel was never really the enemy in any of this, and now he had allowed an evil law firm to attack an innocent child. He knew he could not tell Lilah about Cordelia's pregnancy because that would just make the woman a target for the law firm as well, and as much as Holtz did not like Cordelia for being so close to Angel, he did not think she deserved death for it.

"I wash my hands of this. Of all of this." And with that Holtz walked out of Lilah's office.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****8**

Angel found himself in line at the JFK airport. It had been about two weeks since he had left Sunnydale, and, after taking time to decide what he was going to do and where he was going to go, he had managed his way back to New York City, the first piece of American soil he had ever set his foot on.

He looked down at his boarding pass, thinking of the last time he had crossed the Atlantic. It sure had not been on a plane, and he had definitely not crossed the ocean in a few hours. His trip to America had taken much longer back in the day.

"On business?" The man behind Angel asked, his Irish brogue thick.

"No." Angel said simply, wondering why the man behind him was so friendly. People in cities were never really out of their way friendly, especially not in New York. "Going home."

"You don't sound like you're from the motherland." The Irishman continued.

Angel turned to look at the man behind him, noticing how he kind of resembled Doyle. He was about Doyle's age, if Doyle were still alive, and he had dark, messy hair, although this man was in a suit, something Angel had never seen Doyle in. "I lived there a long time ago."

The Irishman put a hand on Angel's shoulder. "It's good to have you back then."

Angle nodded, looking ahead as the airline assistant motioned him to come forward and make his way onto the plane. This was Angel's way of making sure he would never hurt Connor or Cordelia. He was going home, back to Ireland. He was sure he could do some good there, and he figured, if he were to lose his mind and hurt someone, it would not be anyone he really truly cared about. The only two people who mattered to him were both back in Los Angeles. Cordelia and Connor were far away.

Cordelia sighed, she was tired of chasing Connor from room to room in the house. As she predicted the child had picked up his crawling skills greatly the past week, and was now even standing if he could find something to lean his little body against. Needless today, with Dennis' help, Cordelia had spent the past week baby proofing the apartment, and things weren't getting any easier for the expectant mother. She was now a little over two months pregnant and it was visible. Fred had taken her shopping last week and she was grateful for it. Still, she knew she had along way to go in the weight gaining department.

"Connor…" Cordelia said tiredly as she watched the child turn, look at her from down the hall, and take off on his hands and knees into the living room with a little grin on his face.

"Dennis! Some help?" Cordelia looked for her ghost as she made her way into the living room. There she found that Dennis had indeed helped her, distracting Connor with a ball.

Cordelia picked Connor up. "Thanks, Dennis." She then turned her attention to the child in her hands. "You, mister, better not keep this taking off act up. A few more weeks and I'm not going to be able to chase you anymore."

Cordelia sat on the couch, trying her best to get Connor's little feet into a pair of socks, but kept finding her hump of a stomach to be an obstacle. She thought back to Darla's pregnancy with Connor and how big the vampire had been. She prayed that it wasn't Angel that had made Darla get so big, she didn't think she could handle all of that weight.

Cordelia's thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. She finished getting Connor's socks on and then grabbed the child, placing him on her hip and making her way to the door. "Who is it?"

"It's me!" Fred's voice rang from the other side of the door.

Cordelia sighed. She wished everyone would stop popping in to 'say hi' like they all had been for the past week or so. Cordelia had assured all of her friends she was fine, although they didn't seem to buy it and neither did she. If it hadn't been for Connor or the new baby Cordelia was sure she would have lost it a long time ago. She really missed Angel.

"Cordy?" Fred's voice came through the door.

"Yeah." Cordelia opened the door and motioned for Fred to come in. "Sorry…it's getting harder for me to move around." She looked down at her stomach.

"No biggie." Fred said, smiling at Connor. "I just wanted to come by and see how you two were doing."

"We're good." Cordelia assured Fred as she took a seat back on the couch. "Aren't we Connor?"

Connor took his hands, smashing Cordelia's cheeks in with them, and then giggling.

"Alright, enough of that you." Cordelia put him on the floor to allow him to crawl around.

Fred watched the child, and then turned to see Cordelia also watching Connor, like a proud mother would watch her own child.

"He's getting good at it." Fred commented, taking a seat next to Cordelia.

"The crawling?" Cordelia leaned back into the couch, rubbing her expanding stomach and stretching out her back.

"Yeah." Fred nodded.

"I know." Cordelia said. "He is already standing."

"That means he will be walking soon." Fred said.

"Please…" Cordelia sighed. "Don't remind me. I'm not sure I'll be able to keep up with him."

"Well, the hotel is always open, Cordelia." Fred reminded the seer. "You can come back, move in, anytime."

"I know." Cordelia told her. "But I'm not. Connor and I are fine here, Dennis is here. I like my apartment." She was getting defensive. It wasn't that she hated the Hotel, she didn't, it just reminded her too much of Angel. She had enough reminders of the vampire already, Connor, her new baby, and her visions just to name a few, she didn't need any more.

"Okay." Fred decided to change the subject. "When do you think he's going to start talking?"

"Connor?" Cordelia asked.

"Yes." Fred nodded.

Cordelia shrugged. "I'm not sure. Soon I guess?"

"Usually they talk before they walk." Fred said.

"I think that's girls." Cordelia commented. She had read that in one of the baby books she had recently bought.

"Either way, maybe we should get him practicing." Fred said, leaning down so she was eye level with Connor who was busy inspecting the couch cushion. "Hey Connor, who is that?" She pointed to Cordelia.

Connor looked at Fred, and then mimicked her, also pointing to Cordelia.

"Yeah." Fred smiled. "Is that your mommy? Can you say mommy?"

Cordelia didn't know what to say. She wasn't sure if Connor should be calling her mommy. "Fred, maybe we shouldn't do that."

"Why not?" Fred asked.

"Well…" Cordelia looked down at her hands. "I'm not his mother."

"You are now." Fred told the seer. "You've always been the closest thing he has ever had to one and now you're taking care of him. Trust me, you're his mom."

"Still…" Cordelia didn't want to make a decision like that without Angel. Sure she felt like Connor's mother, but it wasn't her place…her thoughts were interrupted by something.

"Ma." Connor said, clear as glass.

Cordelia's jaw dropped at what Connor had just said. She glanced at the child, feeling the tears forming in her eyes and cursing her raging hormones all at the same time.

Fred looked back and forth between Cordelia and Connor. She couldn't help the smile that was on her face.

"Ma?" Connor questioned Cordelia with the same look of impatience Angel got every once and awhile when Cordelia would ignore him or his comment.

The look on the child's face snapped Cordelia out of her trance and she smiled down at Connor. "Yes, baby?"

Connor reached up at her with a little smile, wanting her to pick him up. Cordelia did so gladly, pulling Connor as close as she could with her stomach, and giving him a tight little hug. This was the bond she had been afraid to form with the child, afraid that if she had gotten to close, Angel would just come back and Connor would leave her. Not that Cordelia did not want Angel to come back, she did. She wanted him to know he had another child on the way, and wanted a happy ending for all of them, but as she sat there, Connor in her arms, she realized that Angel was really gone. Angel might not ever come back.

Giles paced back and forth in his kitchen. He had tried to get a hold of Wesley three times, and still no answer. He continued to study the prophecy in front of him, hoping that, if he did get through to Wesley, he was correct and did not get everyone's hopes up for nothing.

Suddenly, Giles door swung open, causing the old man to jump a little.

"Relax, Giles." Buffy smiled, bouncing into the kitchen. "It's just me."

"Buffy." Giles gave her a nod.

"Why are you so jumpy?" Buffy asked, curiously.

"Nothing." Giles said quickly. He did not want to tell Buffy about the whole Angel situation, or how the vampire had been staying with him up until a few weeks ago.

"Right…and I am not the vampire slayer." Buffy wasn't buying Giles excuses for a minute. Then she noticed the paper in his hand. "What's that?"

Giles looked at the paper in his hand, the prophecy about Angel, no scratch that the _false_ prophecy about Angel. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it earlier, he assumed it was because he had not ever held it up to the light, but as he had been putting it back in the envelope to send to Wesley he had seen it. The company logo, almost transparent to the eye, which the paper was written on; right there, in the middle of the prophecy stood the words WOLFRAM AND HART. Giles recalled the name immediately, having heard enough about it from Buffy when she spoke of Angel. He then looked into the company further and found that they were in the business of creating false prophecies among other things.

"Giles?" Buffy questioned.

"Hmm?" Giles looked at his slayer.

"What is that?" She pointed to the paper again.

"Its…" Giles sighed. He would have to tell her because he knew she wouldn't stop asking until he did. "It's a prophecy. Wesley's sent me it. It's about Angel."

"What does it say?" Buffy seemed extremely curious now, just as Giles had suspected.

Giles sighed, showing her the paper. "That he is going to kill Connor."

Buffy's eyes grew wide as she read the paper. Sure, she was not thrilled at the idea of Connor, mostly because he had been a product of Angel's wild night with Darla, but she knew Angel loved his son more than anything. She immediately threw the paper back at Giles. "We have to warn them!"

"No." Giles said, putting a hand on her shoulder before she could bolt out the door.

"No?" Buffy was outraged. "Are you kidding me, Giles? It says Angel is going to kill his son! His son! We have to tell them! We have to stop him!"

"He already stopped himself!" Giles said quickly, almost bitterly.

Buffy calmed down, unsure of what Giles meant by this. "What?" A million thoughts raced through Buffy's head about what Giles could have meant by his comment.

"He left L.A." Giles sighed. "Wesley found the prophecy and Angel took off."

"Where is Connor?" Buffy asked.

"With Cordelia." Giles told her.

Buffy snorted at that. "Great…" She said sarcastically.

Giles, maybe because of how fondly Angel had spoke of Cordelia, felt the need to defend the former May Queen. "Angel left Connor with her for a reason."

"Okay." Buffy seemed confused by Giles attitude change.

"Anyway, it doesn't matter because the prophecy isn't true." Giles continued. "I don't think it is anyway. Look." He showed Buffy the Wolfram and Hart symbol and watched her nod, a furious look on her face.

"Those people are always screwing around with Angel." Buffy fumed. "Is there any way to be sure that this is definitely fake."

"There are a few spells I could run, or rather Wesley could run." Giles told her.

"Then we go to L.A. and run them." Buffy said.

"Uh I'm not so sure that's a good idea…" Giles said, afraid if he went to L.A. he would expose that Angel had been in Sunnydale, confiding in him. "Maybe we should just send Wesley this stuff back and tell him what we think."

"Giles…" Buffy looked at her watcher. "It's Angel."

And that was all she needed to say to get Giles to agree to go to Los Angeles. It was that and the look on her face. The look that made Giles firmly believed that Angel had been her true love, and no matter how Buffy tried to move on from the vampire, she never really would. However, after spending the past few weeks listening to Angel, Giles believed the vampire had moved on to someone else from Sunnydale. Giles had a feeling Angel had fallen in love with Cordelia over the past few years and just had never gotten the chance to tell the ex-cheerleader that.

Wesley and Gunn had been out walking the streets of downtown Los Angeles for the last hour and a half. They were looking for Holtz like they had been every other afternoon they had sent Fred over to "check" on Cordelia and Connor. They did not trust Holtz, nor did they trust Cordelia being pregnant and alone in her apartment.

"This is stupid." Gunn stopped walking, causing Wesley to stop. "Why are we doing this again?"

"Because this is the last place any of us have seen Holtz." Wesley reminded Gunn.

"No, the last place any of us saw him would be when Cordelia saw him at her apartment." Gunn corrected Wesley.

"Well, we can't stalk Cordelia's apartment complex so this is the plan." Wesley told him.

"Why not?" Gunn asked. "Why can't we stalk Cordy's place? It's the only way any of us are gonna sleep at night. She should just come back to the hotel…"

"Well she is not going to." Wesley said suddenly. He was sick of listening to Gunn. "She isn't going to come back because all that hotel holds for her are empty rooms and memories. She doesn't need that. So if she wants to stay in her apartment that is where she will stay." He didn't mean to sound so angry, he just felt for Cordelia. He had known her the longest out of all of them and he could tell she was hurting, deep down, more than anyone else could imagine.

"Okay. Fine." Gunn was surprised at Wesley's outburst. "You're right. She should be able to stay in her apartment." He picked up his walk again. "Let's just find Holtz. The faster we do that and get him off our back and away from Cordelia and Connor the better off we are."

"Okay." Wesley nodded, a little surprised at himself for standing up to Gunn so well and also somewhat surprised at Gunn for stepping down like he did. It was something new for Wesley, to not be stepped all over, and he felt good about it.

Holtz made his way down the stairs and into the club. He felt very uncomfortable mixing himself in this kind of atmosphere, with all the demons and vampires, but he knew it was necessary for his plan. He had to find the green faced demon that Angel had called a friend.

Lorne had spotted Holtz the minute he had walked into Caritas and he was not happy at all. He had no idea why the man was there, and frankly, he didn't care. All he knew was Holtz had tried to kill Angel, and now had been seen by Cordelia's house. Lorne quickly made his way up the vampire hunter.

"You're not welcome here." Lorne said through a tight lip to Holtz.

"I believe you welcome all kinds here." Holtz said back to Lorne through an equally tight lip. "I need to speak with you."

Lorne thought for a minute and then narrowed his eye. "Fine. You can't touch me in here anyway. This is a sanctuary."

Holtz nodded. "I am not here to kill you."

"Fine." Lorne said, moving aside to take Holtz toward a booth where they could talk quietly.

Holtz followed, taking a seat across from Lorne. "You need to know something."

"That you're crazy?" Lorne raised an eyebrow. "We already knew that."

Holtz narrowed his eyes at Lorne. "I'm not amused."

"And I'm not trying to be a circus act." Lorne said right back.

Holtz looked around the club, a slight smile on his face but said nothing.

"What are you here for, because I've got a line of people waiting for me, cupcake." Lorne was growing impatient.

"Very well." Holtz began. "I believe Miss Chase as well as young Connor are in danger."

Lorne snorted. "From what? You?"

"I know it seems that I would be the last person to come to you with this information, but I do not believe in punishing the innocent, and they both are innocent." Holtz sighed, leaning back. "I have been working side by side with Wolfram and Hart, thinking they wanted me to destroy Angel, but all they wanted to do was bring Angelus back." Holtz shook his head. "And now I found out that they plan to take Connor out as well. Granted, the child is spawn of two vampires, but he has done nothing wrong yet. And now, Miss Chase's child…" Holtz shook his head. "Things could get messy."

"How do you know about Cordelia's baby?" Lorne asked.

"I've seen her. She is pregnant, _clearly_." Holtz said. "But I heard her also. It is Angel's, is it not?"

Lorne stood quickly. "You need to go. _Now_! You leave Cordelia alone, do you hear me?"

"I know you're upset." Holtz stood as well. "But what I am telling you is the truth. I cannot prove it and you have no reason to believe me…"

Lorne narrowed his eyes. "Sing."

"What?" Holtz was confused.

"Sing for me, big guy." Lorne replied, his voice almost bitter. "Sing and I'll know if it's the truth."

Holtz seemed this to be an odd request, but then remembered he had heard something about Lorne's odd talents. "Very well." He complied, singing an old English lullaby.

Holtz had only gotten a few verses into the song when Lorne beckoned him to stop. "That's enough…" The green demon looked greener than usual.

"Are you alright?" Holtz asked.

Lorne narrowed his eyes at Holtz. "You let them play Angel. You let them make up a prophecy that made him think he was going to kill his son. You let him run away from his work and the helpless and Cordelia! You let him leave, he doesn't even know Cordy is having his baby! And for what? To torture him? To kill him? Don't you think the fact that you have driven him from all that mattered is enough?"

"Angelus is evil…" Holtz started.

"Angelus is gone! That's not Angelus!" Lorne waved his hands around. "Angel is here now and Angel is good, and now he is gone because of you. Wolfram and Hart has free reign over this city right now because you can't get over something that happened over a century ago!"

"He killed my family!" Holtz was growing angrier and angrier as Lorne lectured him.

"No. Angelus did. You're not after the same vampire anymore." Lorne told him. "And now, we might as all be dead."

Holtz calmed down for a moment. "What do you suggest?"

"You are coming back to the hotel and explaining this all." Lorne said. "Then somehow, we need to find Angel."

Holtz thought for a minute, nodding. "I will come with you. I have played some role in this…"

"Gee…you think?" Lorne rolled his eyes.

"I _will_ come." Holtz repeated slowly. "However, don't think I hate Angel any less. He is still a vampire and should not be walking this earth."

"Well thanks for the help, buttercup." Lorne said sarcastically. "Come on."

"Not tonight." Holtz said.

"What? Why?" Lorne asked.

"Because." Holtz moved away from the demon. "I need time to sort things out. I came to you. Be grateful for that." And with that Holtz walked out of the club, leaving Lorne there to soak in all the information and decide if he was going to tell Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Cordelia, or if he would wait until Holtz came to the hotel. He decided that maybe Holtz was the man to hear it all from.

Angel made his way out of the airport. It was the middle of the night and he was grateful for that, seeing as how he would not be able to get out of the airport if it was not. He looked around, taking in all the sights around him. It astounded him, so much was different, so much had changed since he had last been there.

"You look a little lost there." A man with a deep irish accient said. He had found a place on the sidewalk and was making himself comfortable.

"Just taking it all in." Angel told him. He wasn't in the mood to talk really.

"Ireland is a beautiful place." The man told him.

Somehow, Angel found the odd man a little comforting. He nodded in agreement. "It is. Changed a lot."

"You've been here before?" The man asked.

"I grew up here." Angel said.

"With that American accent?" The man laughed through his brough.

Angel glared at the man, not liking how he was challenging his roots. "A long time ago."

Before the man could say anymore, Angel started making his way down the street. He figured he would catch a taxi and make his way into Dublin where he could drown his worries and memories in a few too many beers.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****9**

Angel sat on the bed in the dingy, dim-light room of the inn he now called home. He had been staying there for about a week now. The first week or so of his trip in Ireland he had pretty much wander the streets of Dublin, making his way from bar to bar, sewer to sewer, and swinging by any butcher shop he could to pick up pigs blood. Then he finally decided he needed a break, and that's how he found himself at the inn.

The room was not great, but it would do. He had sat in it for a week going out of his mind, his thoughts constantly drifting back to Cordelia and Connor. He wondered if Connor was walking or talking yet. He should be soon if he wasn't. He wondered how Cordelia's pregnancy was going, how Groo felt about being a dad. He wondered if Cordelia's baby would be a boy or a girl; not knowing the child was actually his too.

Angel sighed, standing and making his way to the shower. He did not know what to do with himself now. He had spent so much time and energy figuring out to stay away from Connor and Cordelia and Los Angeles, that now he had no idea where to go, or what was in store. As he turned the shower water on, he let it run as hot as it would go, so when he stepped in the scolding water burnt his back. He needed that feeling, he deserved the burning sensation. He felt it was his way of cleaning away his sins.

Fred stood from her spot at the counter. She had been busying going over a case file, but when she looked up she saw Connor trying to make his way back down the stairs, she wasn't even sure and didn't want to know how the child had gotten up there in the first place. Gunn and Wesley were supposed to be watching the child as Cordelia was busy in the kitchen making Connor and herself lunch, but of course Gunn and Wesley were too involved in their video game.

"Gunn!" Fred seemed to shout.

"What?" Gunn looked up and saw Fred pointing to Connor and immediately he hoped over the back of the couch, running to grab Connor before the child fell. "Connor! Little man slow down there." He scooped Connor up.

"What's wrong?" Cordelia made her way out of the kitchen the fastest she could with her expanding belly.

"Huh?" Gunn looked up, holding Connor, who had the biggest grin on his face, under his one arm as if nothing had happened.

"You yelled Connor." Cordelia told him. "I thought something happened."

"No." Gunn said quickly, knowing he didn't want to hear Cordelia's speech about how she had only asked Gunn to watch Connor for a minute. "Nothing happened. Everything is fine."

"Up!" Connor pointed to the stairs and giggled. His vocabulary had been increasing every day. He was a smart baby.

"Up?" Cordelia raised an eyebrow at Gunn.

"He's fast." Gunn shrugged, setting Connor down on the ground, where the child waddled his way over to Cordelia.

"I'm sure he is." Cordelia picked Connor up, taking her time bending over with her belly in the way. "How about some lunch, baby?"

Connor put his arms around Cordelia's neck. "Ma."

"I'll take that as a yes." Cordelia kissed the top of the child's head.

"What is for lunch?" Wesley asked, pausing the game he and Gunn had been playing.

"I don't know. I didn't make it for you. You're not a year old." Cordelia said sarcastically, and then looked down at Connor. "Right? Tell Uncle Wes that when you're a big boy you'll make your own lunch."

Connor smiled at the word lunch and stuck his head up, looking around. "Yummmm."

Cordelia smiled back at the baby, carrying him into the kitchen. He had gotten so big already. He had just celebrated his one year birthday. It had been a happy day and at the same time a sad one for Cordelia. She had wished Angel had been there to share the moment. Her mind drifted back to him every single time she looked at her growing stomach. She wondered where he was, what he was doing, and if he was happy. She knew he couldn't be, not without Connor. Sometimes she wondered if she had told him she was having his baby and not let him believe it was Groo's, what he would have done. She assumed it would have made him feel only worse about leaving, and in some ways she was happy she hadn't told him. She knew he didn't need that guilt on top of everything else, but she felt terrible for the baby inside of her, to not know its own father, especially when its father was such a wonderful man.

Buffy had finally gotten Giles into the car. It had taken her some time, but she had broken her watcher down and he had agreed to take the trip with her to Los Angeles to tell the Fang Gang the good news, that Angel wasn't evil, and also that Wolfram and Hart were clearly after something.

"Giles!" Buffy yelled as the watcher barreled his way through a yellow light. "Watch it! You'll get us killed driving like this."

"You are in no position to tell me how to drive." Giles reminded Buffy about the _excellent _driver she was.

Buffy folded her arms, leaning back in the passenger seat of Giles car, with the fake prophecy on the floor in front of her. "Just get me to L.A. in one piece…"

Giles nodded. "This should get interesting when we get there." He recalled how Angel had spoken so fondly of Cordelia, he wondered how Buffy would react to Cordelia caring for Connor.

"As long as we get Angel back, that's all that matters." Buffy said.

Giles nodded, his thoughts continuing to drift to how mature Angel had grown, and now, in comparison to Buffy, how the vampire did seem much too old for the Slayer. He wondered if Angel had been the only one to grow up, or if Cordelia had also turned into a fine woman. He sighed, knowing he would find out soon enough, more than likely to the dismay of Buffy.

Night had fallen over Dublin and Angel had decided to take a walk around the city. He was sick of sitting in that old hotel room, with only his thoughts of the life, son, and love he had lost. He had made his way down a familiar street he had walked many times in his teenage years, but now the horses were cars, and the dirt roads were paved over. The only thing that remained the same were the drunks, scattered on the side of the roads.

Angel made his way along, avoiding eye contact with all he passed, and then suddenly a foot flung out in front of him, blocking his way. He looked over to see a drunk man, leaning against the building.

"Beautiful night, huh?" The drunk slurred at Angel.

Angel was not in the mood to talk, yet he felt the need to respond to the man. He got the same feeling from this fellow as he had from the guy outside the airport, and the guy behind him in line for the plane back in New York. "I guess."

"Lots of pretty girls to be saved, you know?" The man gave Angel a wink.

Angel studied the man's face, but not for long, because he heard a scream from the alley over. He quickly took off, making his way around a corner to find a vampire attacking a young woman, dressed in a business suit.

Angel moved toward the vampire, grabbing it and throwing it against the other wall. The vampire retaliated, kicking Angel in the gut, and sending the champion to the ground, but Angel reacted by grabbing the other vampires feet, pulling him down to the ground and then staking him before the vampire knew what hit him.

Angel then stood, brushing the dirt from his jacket.

"Thank you." The girl's voice broke Angel's train of thought. He looked up to see her standing there, shaken up, but okay. "They always tell me not to stay late in the office because I shouldn't walk home alone, but I had so much work…"

The girls rambling reminded Angel of Fred, which in return reminded him of Los Angeles and Cordelia and Connor. He put his hand up, motioning for the girl to stop. "It's okay. You should get home."

"Are you okay?" The woman asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah." Angel swallowed hard, studying the woman's face for the first time. Her eyes were shaped like Cordelia's. "I'm fine. Just get home."

The woman nodded. "Thank you." She then quickly made her way out of the alley and toward the bus stop.

Angel leaned himself against the alley wall, holding his stomach where the vampire had kicked him. He would definitely bruise in the morning. If he were back in Los Angeles, Cordelia would be waiting for him with an icepack in hand, but he was no in L.A., and there would be no one to tend to him when he got back to the Inn he called home.

Angel slowly made his way out of the alley, realizing for the first time that even though he was not in Los Angeles, it did not mean he had to stop being a champion. He knew in his heart he couldn't give up on his mission, he felt compelled to help the helpless. He wasn't doing it for the Powers That Be, all they had done was screwed him over, but he knew if he kept up his mission then he kept up the memories of Cordelia and Connor. He knew they were all still fighting his war back in Los Angeles, so maybe he could do his part in fight it in Ireland. For the first time in weeks, Angel did not feel useless.

Lilah stood in her office starring out the window onto the bright streets of Los Angeles. Angel had been gone about two months now, and his little gang of dectectives over at Angel Investigations had still managed to keep the carnage in L.A. down to a minimum, something the Senior Partners were not happy about.

Lilah gave it time, however, because the remaining members of Angel Inc. gave up the battle, especially now with Cordelia's pregnancy. Lilah had heard about it a little over a week ago but she was not at all surprised, after all, Cordelia had always hit her as being a little slutty. If Lilah only knew that the child Cordelia was carrying was Angel's, then she probably would have cared a little more.

Lilah's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. She made her way over to her desk, answering it. "Lilah Morgan speaking."

"Miss Morgan, this is Miss O'Malley from the Wolfram and Hart in Ireland" The woman with the slight Irish brogue spoke back into the phone.

"Can I help you?" Lilah asked, wondering why the Ireland office had called her.

"It seems your little problem in Los Angeles has found it's way to Ireland." Miss O'Malley explained. "Angel is here."

"He is?" Lilah couldn't help but smile at the phone. They had found Angel, now all they needed to do was bring him back and get Angelus.

"Yes. It seems he saved a girl the other night." Miss O'Malley said.

"Well then, I will send someone over right away." Lilah said, hanging up the phone and quickly making her way out of her office to arrange a private jet to take her and a team over to capture Angel and bring him back. She was sure the Senior Partner's would be happy with this new development.

Cordelia sighed, moving around the lobby as fast as she could, cleaning up the trail of Connor's toys, while he was down for a nap in Wesley's office. Ever since he had started walking, he had left a mess behind anywhere he went. It had been a little over a week since the stair climbing incident and everyone had been keeping an eye on Connor more so now then before, except all your really needed to do was look for his toys and eventually you would find him.

Cordelia was trying her best to keep all of Connor's stuff together, but chasing a toddler around was becoming harder and harder for the expectant mother as each day passed. She hated to admit it, but she knew sooner or later living at the apartment with Connor was going to become impossible. She decided, however, she would cross that bridge when it came time to.

Fred, Gunn, and Wesley made their way in the front door of the hotel with grocery bags in their hands.

"Cordy? What are you doing?" Fred asked, quickly putting the groceries down and moving to help the pregnant woman pick up Connor's toys.

"Relax, Fred." Cordelia smiled. "I'm just picking up after Connor." She turned to Wesley. "I put him down for a nap in your office. I hope that's okay. I couldn't carry him up the stairs by myself."

"That's fine." Wesley assured her. "But where is Lorne? I thought he was here with you."

"He was." Cordelia said, easing herself onto the couch. "He had to run to the club for an hour or so though. Something wrong with the shipment of olives for his drinks."

"Makes sense." Gunn smiled. "Don't want bad olives." He moved toward the kitchen and motioned for Wesley. "Wes, wanna help me put this stuff away?"

"Sure." Wesley nodded, following Gunn into the kitchen.

"So…" Fred plopped herself on the couch across from Cordelia. "How are you feeling?"

Cordelia smiled at Fred's concern as she folded one of Connor's blankets. "I'm fine."

"Really?" Fred asked.

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Cordelia asked. It was true. She was asked at least once a day by one of the members of the Fang Gang how she was feeling, or how she was holding up.

"We just worry about you, Cordy." Fred said, looking down at her hands, and then looking back up, waiting for a response from the pregnant seer.

"I know you do." Cordelia said, playing with the edge of Connor's blanket. Angel had bought it for him for his first Christmas. "And I appreciate it." She sighed, looking away from Fred. Her hormones were raging between the stress and the pregnancy and this would not be the first time she had cried that day. She had spent the morning in the bathroom, wiping up her tears as she thought about Angel and how he was missing so much.

"Cordelia, you don't always have to be so strong. You know that, right?" Fred asked her friend.

Cordelia nodded, feeling a tear slip out of her eye every so often. "I know. I just…" She smiled through her tears, the same famous Cordelia grin she had always possessed, only now did she realize how easy it was for her to toss around a fake smile. "I just need to be strong right now. For me, for Connor…" She looked down at her growing stomach, placing a hand on it. "For this new baby."

"You're not superwoman, Cordelia." Fred reminded her.

"Sometimes I feel like I need to be." Cordelia said, wiping up her tears.

Fred went to say something, but was interrupted by the front door of the hotel swinging open. She looked up, shocked at who she saw. Cordelia saw Fred's face, and turned to see who was at the door. Her mouth too practically hung off of its hinges.

"Good afternoon, ladies." Holtz smiled down at Cordelia and Fred.

Cordelia stood immediately. "Get out."

"I will. First I need to speak with you." Holtz said, taking a step closer.

Wesley and Gunn, having heard the door open, came out from the kitchen.

"Take another step, and you're a dead man." Gunn threatened Holtz.

"Fair enough." Holtz put his hands up in defense, staying where he was.

"Cordelia, get Connor." Wesley said.

Cordelia was already on her way to the office, grabbing Connor, and stirring the child from his sleep, as she carried him back out into the lobby.

"Ma?" Connor said tiredly.

"Shh…" Cordelia kissed the top of the child's head. "Go back to sleep, baby."

Connor didn't seem to want to comply, his eyes opened widely now. He struggled to get Cordelia to put him down so he could walk, but soon he realized his mother was not letting go of him, so he fell limp, placing his head on her shoulder, and sucking his thumb.

"What do you want?" Wesley asked.

"Only to speak with you." Holtz said. "Regarding Angel."

"What about him?" Cordelia asked, the tone of her voice indicating she wanted nothing more then to smack Holtz across the face a few good times.

"The prophecy you received." Holtz looked at Wesley. "How did you decipher it?"

Wesley looked down, knowing he hadn't really. The words had just appeared on the paper.

Cordelia, however, cut Wesley off from telling them this. "How do you even know about the prophecy?"

"Because I designed it." Holtz smiled a little, knowing all the pain he had helped inflict on Angel by created the false prophecy along side of Wolfram and Hart. "Well, I had input in it. The lawyers too care of the rest."

"Wolfram and Hart?" Gunn seemed annoyed.

Holtz nodded. "It was designed to get Angel away from here so I could track and kill him. The lawyers, however, had other purposes which I was not aware of. They seem to want to capture Angel and turn him back into Angelus as well as get a hold of Connor and…well I am not sure." Holtz motioned to the child in Cordelia's arms.

Cordelia pulled Connor closer to her, as if to protect him. "They are after Connor."

Holtz nodded. "And probably the new baby…" Holtz pointed to Cordelia's expanding waist. "If they knew it were Angel's."

Cordelia moved a hand protectively to her stomach. "You didn't tell them? You knew."

"I didn't feel the need to put you in anymore danger, Miss Chase." Holtz said.

Cordelia snorted at his comment. "Like I believe that."

"Wait…" Fred remembered something important. She looked up at Holtz. "What do you mean you and Wolfram and Hart _designed _the prophecy?"

"We created it." Holtz said.

"So it's false?" Fred realized. "I mean, the Powers didn't create it."

Holtz nodded. "Angel was never going to kill Connor." He looked directly at Cordelia. "I am sorry for the trouble this has caused you."

Cordelia's eyes grew wide, her rage bubbling to the surface, no doubt with the help of her hormones. "You mean, Angel was never going to hurt Connor. You trick us into believing that so you could go kill him? You took the champion out of the city so all the evil could go wild, so you could teach Angel a damn lesson?"

"I understand your anger…" Holtz started.

"No you don't." Cordelia cut him off. "Just like I don't believe a word you just said."

Just then, Lorne made his way into the hotel, realizing Holtz was there, and sensing the rage in the room. He knew what Holtz must have just explained, but he played it down. "What's going on in here?" He moved down the stairs, standing next to Cordelia.

"He's trying to tell us that the prophecy was a lie." Cordelia couldn't help all of the emotions she was feeling. She couldn't tell if she was about to scream or cry. She turned back to Holtz. "How do we know this isn't a trick? That you just want us to find Angel so he can come back and kill us all?" She doubted Angel would ever do that, but who knew what Holtz had up his sleeve?

"He is speaking the truth." The familiar voice of Giles filled the hotel as he hand Buffy made their way in from the back door.

Cordelia's jaw hung open, and the tears filled her eyes now as she ran her hand over Connor's head, which was firmly on her shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"He…" Giles motioned to Holtz. "He speaks the truth. The prophecy is a lie. Its false. I confirmed it." He moved down, Buffy following him, and handed the prophecy off to Wesley. "I nearly missed it myself."

Cordelia felt the tears bubble in her eyes. "What?"

"So Angel was never gonna kill anyone? He was never gonna hurt Connor?" Gunn asked.

"No." Giles shook his head.

Cordelia felt herself falling backwards, the shock of everything hitting the pregnant woman hard. Gunn quickly caught her though, moving her to the coach to sit down, where she continued to hold Connor. "What the hell…" She mumbled.

"I apologize again." Holtz told her. "But I need to go."

"No, you need to explain this better." Wesley said, sternly.

"Wolfram and Hart is after me. It's only a matter of time before they find me. I said all I need to, I gave you all I know." Holtz nodded. "I need to go."

Before anyone could stop Holtz, he made his way out of the hotel, and out of the Fang Gang's lives.

"My God…" Cordelia chocked on the words, her tears rising.

"Cordy, it's okay." Fred sat down next to the pregnant woman.

Cordelia shook her head. "He's gone." She looked up. "Angel's gone."

"We will get him back, Cordy." Gunn told her.

"Yeah." Buffy nodded. "We will get him back to his son and everything will be normal again."

Cordelia just looked up at the slayer. She didn't know what to say.

"Here, princess." Lorne motioned to Cordelia. "Why don't you let me take Connor for a minute."

Cordelia nodded, handing the child off to the demon. She needed a second to take everything in.

"You're pregnant?" Buffy couldn't catch herself before the words spilled out of her mouth. In all the confusion and commotion she hadn't noticed Cordelia's stomach until Connor moved away from her.

Cordelia nodded, running a hand over her face. This was the last conversation she wanted to have. Right now, all she could think about was Angel. He was away from his children, from her, for no reason. She wanted to break down then and there, but she knew that would have to wait until she got into the privacy of her own home. She had to be strong right now, not only for herself but for Connor, the new baby, the rest of the Fang Gang, and for Angel.

"Well, good to know that in all of this mess you've been thinking about yourself…" Buffy snorted. Typical Cordelia, only caring about her wants and needs, Angel was out there somewhere, away from his son, and alone, and Cordelia was out having sex. Buffy was almost happy that Cordelia had to face some sort of repercussion for seeking pleasure while Angel was in pain.

Cordelia couldn't even find the words to defend herself, and she knew Buffy didn't understand, so she didn't even react to what Buffy was saying. She just kept looking down at her stomach, tears in her eyes, and Angel on her mind.

Fred defended Cordelia, not really understanding the complex relationship between Angel and Buffy and Cordelia. "Leave Cordelia out of this. You can't just barge in here and accuse her of being some slut when you don't even know what's going on!"

"Fred…" Cordelia looked up at the other girl. She knew it was not the time or place to have this conversation, right now they should be focused on getting Angel back.

"No Cordy!" Fred was on a role. "She can't just come here and be so rude to you!" She turned back to Buffy, Fred's anger really startling everyone in the room. "For your information, Cordelia has been the most unselfish person in this room. She has been taking care of Connor, having visions, helping run this business, and she didn't just go out and get herself pregnant, that baby…"

"Fred!" Wesley tried to cut in, knowing that if Fred said what she was about to, things between Buffy and Cordelia were only going to get worse, and that was not what Cordelia needed right now.

"What?" Fred asked. "This crazy blonde girl should know that Cordelia didn't just sleep around." She turned back to Buffy. "She knows who that baby's father is!"

"And yet I don't think I see him anywhere." Buffy didn't like being preached at by Fred, and looking around the room at the men, she highly doubted Wesley, Lorne, or Gunn had fathered Cordelia's child.

Giles decided to jump in, knowing there were more important issues at hand, like getting Angel back. He recalled what Angel had told him about Cordelia's pregnancy. "Some champion right? A good man?"

Cordelia looked up at Giles, suspecting for the first time, that Angel had been in contact with the watcher. Angel was the only one who thought the baby she was carrying was Groo's and Angel was the only one she knew who would call the Groosalugg a "champion" and a "good man". She didn't have time to ask Giles though, because Fred jumped back in.

"Damn right Angel is a champion!" Fred smiled, saying the words.

"Angel?" Buffy's jaw dropped as she stared down at Cordelia's large stomach.

Cordelia just gave a slight smile and a nervous laugh as she placed a hand on her belly and waited for the Slayer's reaction to the news.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****10**

"It's Angel's?" Buffy continued to stare at Cordelia's pregnant stomach.

Cordelia stood as quickly as she could, one hand on her stomach. She did not need this now. "Yes." She sighed. "It's Angel's."

Buffy shook her head. "How? I mean…he's a vampire and you and him…how?"

"It's a long story." Cordelia said. "And its not important now, what's important is Angel…"

"Wrong." Buffy said coldy. "What's important is how you always try to take everything from me, Cordelia. You always have."

Cordelia was at a loss of words. "Buffy? What are we? In kindergarten?"

Giles had to agree. He could see how Los Angeles had also changed Cordelia, just like he noticed the change in Angel. Cordelia seemed so much older than Buffy right now.

"Angel was mine!" Buffy snapped.

Cordelia shook her head, standing and quickly grabbing Connor out of Lorne's grasp. She said nothing as she started packing his things into his diaper bag as fast as she could using her free hand.

"That's it, run away." Buffy was fuming. "You know I am right."

Cordelia stood, glaring at Buffy through the small amount of tears in her eyes. "Angel left you. Don't forget that."

"And you were just convenient." Buffy shot back. "Don't forget that."

Gunn went to say something, but Wesley stopped him, whispering to all of the Fang Gang and Giles who had found themselves in the corner of the lobby. "Let them do this…Cordelia needs to get some of that anger out."

Giles nodded in agreement with Wesley. "And sometimes Buffy needs to be put in her place."

Gunn, Fred, and Lorne nodded, all remaining quiet in the corner.

"You are not ever going to understand what went on between me and Angel." Cordelia said, knowing that was true because she wasn't even sure if she would really ever understand it. "But trust me, I wasn't convenient."

"You were just like Darla was…a way to stop his pain for a little!" Buffy snapped, and then pointed at Cordelia's still growing belly. "And look! He left you the same thing he left Darla!"

Cordelia hiked Connor up on her hip, as if to protect him. "You leave Connor out of this!"

Connor seemed un-amused by the fight between Cordelia and Buffy until his name was said. He then looked up at Cordelia. "Ma?"

Buffy snorted at that. "Wow, and you already got him to call you "mom"." She motioned to Connor. "What a way to wrap Angel around your finger even more when he gets back."

Cordelia narrowed her eyes at Buffy, speaking surprisingly calmly. "The relationship that Connor and I have is _none_ of your business."

"You took someone's son and made him your own!" Buffy was going around in circles. She really had no reason to be mad at Cordelia.

"Angel left Connor with me!" Cordelia defended herself.

"He didn't tell you to become the kid's mother, did he?" Buffy snapped.

That was enough for Gunn, he had to step in. "Cordelia is the closest thing Connor will _ever _have to a mother, and no Angel never directly asked Cordelia to be Connor's mother, it just kind of happened. And if you ask me, she is doing a damn good job."

"Well, I didn't ask you!" Buffy snapped before taking off out the door.

Connor seemed to be getting uneasy with all the commotion. He wrapped his arm around Cordelia's neck and pulled himself tightly to her. "Mama…"

"Shh…" Cordelia bounced Connor, slowly easing into the couch with her stomach and him wrapped around her. "It's okay, baby, the crazy lady is gone."

"I apologize for her." Giles sighed. "Buffy just can dramatize sometimes."

"Gee…I've only been saying that for years." Cordelia raised an eyebrow at Giles.

"I'll deal with her." Giles assured the group. "But right now, you all have more important things to do."

"Like find Angel." Fred said.

Giles nodded. "And soon. I don't doubt you are all doing a fine job here but Los Angeles needs him."

"We need him." Cordelia said, running her hands over Connor's back in an effort to sooth the baby.

Giles nodded. "I don't doubt that."

"Well, we should get to work then." Lorne clapped his hands.

Wesley nodded. "Let's go into the office." He turned to Giles. "Giles?"

"One moment." Giles said, nodding toward Cordelia who was too busy looking at Connor and her round stomach to notice.

"Sure." Wesley nodded, understanding Giles wanted to talk to Cordelia. He motioned for Lorne, Fred, and Gunn to follow him into his office.

"Cordelia." Giles said, sitting across from the expectant mother.

Cordelia looked up, realizing only she, Giles, and Connor were left in the room. "Yeah?"

"Angel…he stopped by in Sunnydale after he left here." Giles said cautiously.

"I know." Cordelia nodded simply, continuing to look down at Connor and rub the child's back as he leaned his head against her, sucking his thumb. She smiled at the baby, knowing deep down she was excited to have her own child soon enough, even if Angel was going to be there.

"You know?" Giles was confused. Had Angel been in contact with Cordelia?

Cordelia nodded, looking up at Giles to explain. "When you spoke of Groo…the guy Angel thought was the father of my baby." She placed her hand that she was using to rub Connor's back on her growing belly for emphasis. "Well, first of all, you wouldn't have known of Groo without talking to Angel, and secondly, Angel was the only one who continued to call Groo a good man. I knew you had to have spoken to him."

Giles nodded, Cordelia was a lot smarter then he had ever given her credit for. "Angel doesn't know its his baby…" He motioned to her protruding belly.

Cordelia shook her head, looking back down, and rubbing small circles on her stomach. "No…I didn't have the heart to tell him."

"You will be able to soon enough." Giles stood. "I should be going. I really do apologize for Buffy."

"It's fine." Cordelia sighed. "I'm not worried about her."

Giles nodded, with a smile. "You have really grown into a spectacular woman, Cordelia."

"Thanks Giles." Cordelia said, genuinely.

Giles nodded, making his way out the door.

Once the watcher was gone, Cordelia sighed, looking down at Connor. "Why don't we get out of here, baby? Let Uncle Wes try and find daddy? I don't think I can sit around here anymore, that was all too much for me."

Connor just smiled up at Cordelia.

Cordelia then quickly gathered all of her things as well as Connor's and made her way toward the door. She just wanted to go home and collapse in her bed, and cry. She wanted to cry for Connor, for the new baby, for Angel, and mostly for herself. She had never been one to take pity on herself, but she was just tired, and angry, and wanted Angel back.

Angel sank slowly into the small bed at the inn. His wounds still fresh from his encounter with the vampire earlier. He sighed, rubbing the spot he had gotten hit, his thoughts drifting back to Cordelia and Connor. He knew if Cordelia had been around, she would have patched him up before she let him anywhere near Connor with all the blood.

Angel ran a hand through his hair and gazed out his window at the irish city below. The sun wouldn't be rising anytime soon, but he could not find it in him to sleep through the day. He had no reason to be awake during the sunlight, not anymore, because he had no interaction with humans like he once had. He did not have to keep office hours, or worry about Cordelia or Gunn or Wesley or Fred being too tired to work. Now, he could maintain the hours he was meant to, the others a creature of the night was supposed to have, but yet he still was not ready to start that.

"So this is it…" Angel spoke out loud to himself, wondering how his life had come to this point. A few weeks ago he was content with his son, and was learning to accept the fact that Cordelia might never know he really loved her, now he was a million miles from all the things that mattered to him.

It kind of made sense. He never deserved happiness, not after all he had done, and he knew that. He just didn't understand how he would have ever hurt Connor. He could not imagine it, and that was what frustrated him the most out of all of it. The prophecy spoke it, but Angel never felt it. Not once.

Angel didn't have much more time to brood before there was a knock on his door.

Angel grumbled, climbing out of bed and flicking on the dim light before making his way to the door. He opened it to find a bellboy on the other side.

"What?" Angel asked.

"Well, no need to say hello." The bellboy said sarcastically.

Angel did not reply, just raised an eyebrow at the younger man in front of him. This guy seemed to have a familiar glimmer in his eye, and Angel felt the same odd sense of comfort he had felt with the airport men, and the guy in the alley earlier. Angel found it strange that he kept getting the feeling like he knew all these men he had never met before in his life.

"Anyway, this was dropped off for you." The boy handed Angel a piece of paper. "Rescue the damsels now sir." The bellboy winked before pulling the door closed.

Angel stood there for a moment, taking in the bellboys choice of words before opening the folded piece of paper he had been handed.

"What the hell?" Angel looked at the paper in his hand. It had an address on it, and the handwriting seemed somewhat familiar but Angel couldn't place it. He through the paper on the floor and wanted to go back to bed, but he couldn't find it in him to sleep. After a few minutes he sighed and stood, grabbing his leather jacket and picking up the piece of paper. For some bizarre reason he felt the need to go to the address on the paper.

Holtz sighed, sitting on the bus that was taking him to LAX. He felt somewhat responsible for Cordelia's pain, and Connor's lack of a chance to have a father. He did not feel sorry for Angel, he couldn't. Angelus had taken so much for him and for that, Holtz would never forgive the vampire. However, neither Cordelia nor Connor had done anything directly to Holtz except have a connection to Angel. Holtz now realized he could not penalize them for that.

That's why he was going to the airport. He knew he needed to find Angel and tell him the truth. He needed to know he had not harmed Cordelia or Connor in the long run. He did not want to die with that guilt.

And Holtz knew it was only a matter of time before he did die. He was sure his betrayal of Wolfram and Hart would lead him to an early grave, and he accepted that. He had lived far too long with all the rage and anger he had inside. He was ready to let it go.

He just needed to find Angel. He needed to set it right. Not that he would ever forgive the vampire, that was impossible, but he needed to find his own piece, and he had a feeling he knew where he could find that, and the souled vampire.

Lilah had just gotten the email that had come directly from the Senior Partners, confirming everyone associated with Wolfram and Hart's worst fear. Holtz had told the truth. He had gone to Angel Investigations and told them that the prophecy was a lie, and now they were going to find their champion.

"Great…" Lilah leaned back into her chair, contemplating her next move. She knew they had to eliminate Holtz. He was no longer any use to them, plus she knew the Senior Partner's would want Holtz' head on a chopping block, or they would want hers, and she was not about to give her own head up just yet.

She stood, moving to the window and looking out on the streets of Los Angeles below. "So now, Holtz, we must figure out where you are." She spoke to herself.

Suddenly a smile crept across her face as she realized something. Wolfram and Hart was global, dimensional. Every office, every employee, they knew what Holtz looked like and that he needed to be destroyed. All Lilah had to do was wait for someone to find Holtz and he was as good as dead.

Angel doubled checked the address on the piece of paper in his hand. He then looked up at the small apartment building in front of him. He still could not believe he was about to go up to some random apartment and knock on the door. What was he even going to gain from this?

Angel sighed, crumpling up the paper. This was a stupid idea, he decided as he turned around, ready to make his way back to the inn, when suddenly, he heard a scream from one of the apartments. He quickly busted through the door and up a flight of stairs where he saw a woman's arm hanging out of a door frame. Angel rushed forward to find a werewolf towering over screaming woman.

"Hey ugly." Angel glared at the wolf.

The creature looked at Angel, and decided the vampire looked much more appetizing. It quickly lunged at Angel, but was surprised when Angel was strong enough to launch it down the hall.

Angel quickly bent down next to the woman before the werewolf got back up. "Invite me in."

"What?" The woman was sitting up now.

Angel looked down the hall at the wolf who had stood up now, clearly angry. He turned back to the woman. "Invite me in your apartment. Now!"

"Okay. Okay. Come in." The woman seemed in a daze, her Irish brogue coming out strong, probably from the trauma.

Angel nodded, quickly grabbing her and moving through the doorframe before shutting the door on the approaching werewolf. A second later he felt the wolf trying to push its way through the door.

Angel leaned against the door, looking at the shocked woman who was now standing. "Did it bite you?"

"What?" The woman looked at Angel.

"The wolf. Did it bite you?" Angel repeated his question, knowing the door wouldn't hold much longer.

The woman shook her head and started to cry. "No. He's…it was my boyfriend."

"That thing?" Angel nodded his head to the door behind him.

The woman nodded. "I don't know what happened."

"Werewolf." Angel said simply.

"What?" The woman was shocked.

"Its…he is a werewolf." Angel said.

The woman shook her head. "They aren't real."

"Oh trust me." Angel told her. "They are." He then changed the subject. "Got any silver?"

"What?" The woman was still shocked.

"Silver. You know, a silver pen, maybe a spoon. Something?" Angel asked. "A bullet would be great…"

"I have a cross." The woman nodded to the wall behind Angel.

Angel looked to his left to see a rather large silver, Celtic cross hanging from the ceiling. "Luck of the Irish." He said sarcastically, before ripping the cross down, feeling it burn at his hand, and smelling the stench of his own burning flesh. He quickly opened the door and dove out, attacking the werewolf and sticking the silver cross right through its heart. He then quickly released it and shook his burnt hand, watching the werewolf change back into the shape of a young male.

The woman rushed past Angel, gathering up the body of her boyfriend. "What…he…"

Angel looked down at his burnt hand; he couldn't look the woman in the eye. He had saved her, but he had also taken her love away from her. That was something he knew a little bit about, as his thoughts drifted back to Cordelia.

"I'm sorry." Angel said.

The woman just shook her head, and Angel could tell in all her confusion, she knew he had saved her. He nodded to her, and left her there, making his way back down the stairs and onto the streets of Dublin.

Connor's cries woke Cordelia from her sleep. It had been a little over a week since the incident with Buffy, and Cordelia had still not allowed herself to cry about any of it. She had just kept herself busy with Connor and her pregnancy, trying not to think about how Wolfram and Hart had tricked Angel to leaving her behind.

She made her way down the hall as fast as she could with her growing stomach. She was getting bigger by the day, almost four months now. She couldn't imagine what the next five would bring.

"What's wrong, baby?" Cordelia entered Connor's bedroom, flicking on the light to find the child standing in his crib, holding onto the edge with his little fists.

"Mamamamama!" Connor screamed, bouncing his little knees.

Cordelia now realized Connor had not been crying, instead he was throwing a temper tantrum. She looked over at the clock she kept on his dresser. It was three in the morning. She looked back at the bouncing child. "Connor? What is wrong with you tonight?"

"Up!" Connor reached his arms out for Cordelia to pick him up.

Cordelia, tried and a little confused by Connor, did so, scooping him out of his crib, and taking him out to the living room. "Are you hungry?" She asked him, grabbing a bottle out of the fridge and sitting on the couch with him, trying to get him to drink it. He had been eating solid foods lately, and now she wondered if giving him a bottle before bed was no longer filling him up.

Connor shook his head at the bottle though, pointing at the living room floor, to the shiny red firetruck Gunn had bought him for his birthday.

Cordelia followed Connor's hand to the truck. "You woke up because you wanted to play?" Cordelia was almost in shock.

"Play! Play!" Connor giggled.

"No." Cordelia said quickly, her tone causing Connor to stop giggling.

Connor looked back up at her, a serious look on his face now. "Ma?"

Cordelia shook her head, she couldn't control the tears any longer, and they began rushing down her cheeks. "I can't do this Connor." She sobbed.

"No." Connor grabbed her cheeks, trying to wipe up her tears, which only made Cordelia cry more.

She felt like she deserved the cry. There she was, sitting there, raising the child of the man she loved and another woman, and pregnant with his second "miracle baby" and he had no idea because someone had decided to take him away from all he loved.

"I'm sorry, sweetie." Cordelia looked at Connor too see he was upset that she was crying. "Mommy is just so tired."

"Nap?" Connor seemed to suggest, although his vocabulary was still very limited.

Cordelia laughed through her tears at Connor's attempt. "I'm not sure a nap can fix this." Her tears were less frequent now. "Mommy just misses Daddy."

Connor looked up at Cordelia with a funny face. Did he know a Daddy?

Cordelia realized now that she had broken a promise to Angel. Because she had missed him so much and tried to keep her mind off of the vampire, she had neglected to tell Connor about him, something she had swore she would do. She leaned across the couch as best as she could with her belly and Connor, who was now standing on the couch next to her, holding onto her shoulder. She then picked up a picture off the coffee table of her, Angel, and baby Connor, at her birthday, right before she had slammed into the glass cabinet and been forced to become part demon.

"This is Daddy." Cordelia pointed to Angel in the picture and looked at Connor.

Connor seemed to study Angel for a minute, realizing that maybe he did remember the man with the funny hair. "Ma." He pointed to Cordelia in the picture.

Cordelia smiled. "That's me." She pointed to the blue bundle she was holding. "And that's you." And then she pointed to Angel. "And that's Daddy."

Connor looked at Cordelia, then back at the picture, then pointed to Angel. "Da-da?"

Cordelia smiled at Connor, shaking her head as the tears formed in her eyes again. "That's right. That's Daddy."

"Where go?" Connor seemed to ask.

Cordelia interpreted the child's bad English as "Where did he go".

"Daddy had to go away for a little." Cordelia explained. "But he will be back, and he loves you very much."

Connor seemed satisfied with this answer as he leaned his head against Cordelia's shoulder.

"You tired, baby?" Cordelia asked him.

Connor yawned and Cordelia took that as a yes. She picked him up and carried him back into her bedroom, laying him down with her. For some reason, she didn't want to spend the rest of that night alone in her big bed with only her enlarging belly to remind her of Angel. She wanted to see Angel, and she could, through every expression Connor on his face, even the one's the child had while sleeping.

Angel was about to go back to the inn when he realized something. Every single time he ended up helping someone, a guy had showed him the way, and every single time he felt lost, a guy had seemed to comfort him. Sure, it had been a different guy every time, but they all had the same glimmer in their eye, they all seemed the same to Angel.

And, as if on cue, the bellboy from earlier was making his way down the street toward Angel.

"Hey, stop." Angel told the bellboy, moving to catch up to the younger gentlemen.

"So you figured it out?" The bellboy asked, nonchalantly.

"You keep sending me to save people." Angel said, then backtracked. "Well not specifically you, but guys like you."

The bellboy nodded, continuing to walk. "You sure they weren't all me?"

"What?" Angel was confused. "No. I mean…"

The bellboy stopped, looking Angel in the eye. "You haven't changed a bit."

Angel raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Come on champ." The bellboy smiled. "You really forget my gorgeous face?"

Angel still seemed confused, not answering the boy.

"Fine." The bellboy began to walk. "If you can't figure it out, you're not ready to know."

Before Angel could say anything, the bellboy seemed to almost dissolve into the fog of the night.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****11**

Connor was on a mission, clear and simple. He would not be caught by his Uncle Gunn at any cost. The toddler awkwardly wobbled around the furniture of the Hyperion Lobby with his best impersonation of a run, while Gunn slowly chased after him.

It was a game for Connor, one he was getting better and better at. He had gotten his walking down pat over the past month and now all he wanted anyone to do was chase him around. Gunn, being a big kid himself, was always the first to volunteer.

"I'm gonna get you, Connor." Gunn smiled at the fifteen month old, who was grabbing onto the side of the couch for support.

Connor just giggled, although his breath was short, his little lungs getting tired from all of the horse play.

"Okay, that's enough boys." Cordelia emerged from the kitchen, carrying a tray with lunch on it over her huge stomach. She definitely looked five months pregnant. "Lunch time."

Connor clapped his hands and waddled over to the tray Cordelia had put down on the coffee table, picking up the pieces of banana Cordelia had cut up for him. "Ma!" He smiled up at her, proudly showing her the banana slice.

Cordelia smiled at Connor. "Eat that, sweetie."

Connor did so, plunging the piece into his mouth before looking for his cup of milk.

Cordelia watched Connor, slowly easing herself into the couch. She was getting much more tired much faster, the weight of the baby inside of her starting to take a toll, not to mention the kicking it had recently started. She felt like her stomach was a drum set.

"Thanks, Cordy." Gunn held up his sandwich.

Cordelia shook her head. "Fred made that one. Not me. If I had made it, I would have eaten it before I got out here." She joked, although recently she had been eating much more. She attributed it to the fact that she was indeed pregnant, and the stress of looking for Angel. They had been at it for a month, and still no word on him. If it hadn't been for Connor keeping her busy, she was sure she would have lost it by now.

"You look good." Gunn said, taking a seat across from the pregnant seer.

Cordelia shrugged, looking at her stomach. "I look fat."

"You're having a baby, not fat." Gunn told her.

"Yesss!" Connor squealed, carrying the "s" sound through his two front teeth. His vocabulary had grown immensely, and there was no doubt in anyone's mind he was extremely smart.

Cordelia laughed at her son. "Yes? Yes what?"

"Baby." Connor said simply, pointing to Cordelia's stomach with the hand that wasn't full of banana.

Cordelia was at a loss of words for a second, unable to believe what Connor had just said. It brought tears to her eyes, and she damned her hormones for making her so emoitional lately.

"Sad?" Connor asked, pointing to Cordelia's tears.

"No, sweetie." Cordelia pulled Connor up on the couch next to her. "Happy." She put a hand on her stomach. "You knew Mommy had a baby in here?"

"Baby!" Connor grinned, putting his head against Cordelia's stomach. "Hi." He seemed to say to the baby.

Cordelia couldn't help but cry, she pulled Connor into her stomach a little more, so she could hug both him and the unborn child inside of her. She then bent down and kissed Connor's head.

Gunn smiled, taking in the vision of the family in front of him. One thing was missing though, one big, tall, brooding, vampire. Gunn silently made his way up from the couch, moving into the office to see how things were going in the hunt for Angel.

"Gunn." Wesley acknowledged him as Gunn closed the door to his office.

"How's it going?" Gunn asked.

"Its not." Fred sighed, hanging up the phone. "We thought we had him, but it wasn't."

"Angel is a hard vampire to find." Lorne nodded. "I've tried every connection I have across all fifty states. No one has seen him."

"Maybe he isn't in the U.S. anymore." Gunn suggested.

"He must be." Wesley said. "Angel was not about to get on any plane or any boat anytime soon. Too risky for a vampire."

"Not if it's a night flight." Gunn said.

"Still…" Wesley sighed. "We should stay localized until we are sure he isn't here."

"That could take months." Gunn said, looking back out at Connor and Cordelia in the lobby, and then back at Wesley. "We don't have months."

"It will take as long as it takes." Wesley said. "We are trying our best."

"But Cordy…" Gunn just looked down.

"Cordy what?" Cordelia asked, entering the lobby with Connor on her hip. If she wasn't part demon she was sure she wouldn't be able to pick the toddler up anymore with her stomach, but it hadn't really been a problem yet."

"We…uh…" Gunn started. "We were just saying…"

"Look, guys." Cordelia sighed. "I appreciate all the work you are doing looking for Angel, but don't forget we have innocent people to save. Remember the helpless?"

"What are you saying?" Gunn asked.

"I'm saying…" Cordelia took a deep breath. "I'm saying that Angel might not come back, and if he doesn't I want you guys to know I'm going to be okay. I don't want you to worry about me."

"But we will always worry about you, Cordelia." Fred said. "We are all family."

"Well, I mean don't worry extra about me, okay?" Cordelia said. "I mean, Angel will never be far, Connor is here, and this new baby will be here and that's Angel to me. I've accepted that, and I am just grateful to have these two children." She looked at her stomach and then at Connor who was leaning his head against her shoulder. "I'm lucky enough for that."

Everyone understood where she was coming from, but no one was willing to accept it yet.

"We're going to find him, Cordelia." Wesley told her.

Cordelia smiled weakly at Wesley. "I hope so." She then looked back at Connor and her belly, the only things she had left of the vampire with a soul.

Angel made his way back into his dingy hotel room from saving yet another person, this time a small school boy who had been taken capture by a group of demons. He flicked the light on and shrugged his jacket off, revealing a fresh wound to his shoulder.

"Just add it to the collection." Angel touched his wounded shoulder.

This had been going on for about a month now, he would get a note or an address and there he would find someone to save. He had not seen the mystery man since the bellboy incident and it had been eating away at the souled vampire. He knew whoever that guy was, he just didn't know how.

He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and it flipped open to a photo of Cordelia, himself, and Connor on Cordelia's birthday. He studied the picture for a moment, realizing that was about a year ago now. Had he been gone that long?

Angel thought about and realized he had. "Five months…" He counted it in his head. He had been away from his child and the woman he loved for five months. He wondered how Connor was, probably walking by now, and he wondered how Cordelia's pregnancy was going.

Quickly, he closed his wallet, frustrated that he would, more than likely, never know the answers to any of his questions. He would never get to see his son grow, or watch Cordelia become the incredible mother he knew she would be. That was all Groo's privileges now, or so Angel thought. He had no idea Groo was long gone.

Holtz had been right about knowing Angelus like the back of his hand. He had tracked the vampire for years, but he realized now that he did not know Angel. Now he knew Angelus and Angel were not the same vampire.

Holtz had spent the past few weeks moving through Europe, looking for Angel. He had first gone to Rome, knowing how much Angelus had liked it there, but clearly he had been wrong because there had not been a single sign of Angel's presence there. He then moved up, through Germany and France, and now he found himself in Angelus' homeland. He was in Ireland.

Holtz hoped Ireland would bring better luck in finding Angel, but so far it had not. Angel had not been in or around his hometown at all. Now, having no choice, Holtz moved into the city of Dublin, hoping to the vampire.

Holtz made his way into a bar, moving to the counter.

"Can I help you, lad?" The bartender asked.

"I'm looking for someone." Holtz said.

"Aren't we all?" The bartender joked, his brogue thick.

"Have you seen him?" Holtz handed the bartender a picture of Angel.

The bartender studied the picture, and then handed it back to Holtz. "Can't say I have. Sorry."

Holtz nodded, he figured that much. He was about to turn and leave the bar when a woman who had been sitting there stopped him.

"I know him." The woman told Holtz.

"This man?" Holtz pointed to the picture of Angel.

The woman nodded. "He saved me."

"Saved you?" Holtz raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah…from a…a wolf." The woman said.

Holtz nodded. That sounded like Angel. "Do you know where I can find him?"

The woman shook her head. "No. He just kind of showed up, helped me, and then left. Kind of like an angel or something…" The woman seemed to be thinking hard. "An angel who likes to wear black."

Holtz nodded, finding it ironic that the woman had called Angel an angel. "But he is here?"

"In Dublin?" The woman asked. "Well at least I know he was."

"Thank you." Holtz said, making his way out of the bar. The tip was better then nothing. At least he knew he was getting somewhere with his search. Angel had been in Ireland, and Holtz hoped, as he made his way down the street, the vampire still was.

Lilah sighed, sitting at her desk. She had still gotten no word on Holtz or his whereabouts, but the Senior Partners seemed to think the same as she did; it was only a matter of time with Holtz really. Eventually he would show up and eventually they would kill him.

She turned in her chair to find the door to her office opening and Gavin making his way in.

"Can I help you?" Lilah asked the other lawyer, rather annoyed with his presence.

"Cordelia." Gavin said simply. "Angel's seer."

Lilah went back to looking at her computer screen. "I know who she is. What about her?"

"She's pregnant." Gavin said.

"And?" Lilah looked back at Gavin. "So? She got herself knocked up, good for her."

"It's Angel's." Gavin smiled.

Lilah stared at the other lawyer for a minute, unsure if she should believe him. "What do you mean it's Angel's?"

"We have a source, heard something from someone." Gavin said simply. "She is carrying Angel's child."

"Who told you?" Lilah asked.

"Someone overheard that slayer talking. The one in Sunnydale?" Gavin described Buffy. "One of our clients over there heard her tell her friend that Cordelia was pregnant with Angel's child."

Lilah stood. "You're certain?"

"Positive." Gavin said.

Lilah shook her head. "This is not good." And it wasn't. It was just another problem that needed to be taken care of before Angel was found, before he could get back to Los Angeles. Lilah knew they had to figure out a way to get a hold of both Connor and Cordelia now.

Angel had gotten three more notes in the past few days, and all of them had led him to addresses where he had either saved someone or exterminated a demon or vampire clan. He felt good helping the helpess and knowing he was still fighting the mission his family was fighting back in Los Angeles. It also helped to keep his mind off of Cordelia and Connor. Every time he wasn't fighting his thoughts would drift back to them, and he would find himself in another brooding spell.

And that's where he found himself now as he pulled his jacket off, tossing it on the floor. He had been out half the night saving people, and the half he had dedicated to looking for the guy who had been dropping him all the notes. He had done this every night for the past week or so, but so far had had no luck in locating the guy.

As he went to take his shirt off, there was a knock at his door. Angel sighed, pulling his shirt back over his head, and moving to the door. He opened it to find a younger police officer.

"Can I help you officer?" Angel was surprised to see the police at his door.

"Can I come in?" The officer asked.

Angel nodded, moving aside to let the officer in. "Is something wrong?"

The officer smiled at Angel. "Nah, I just wanted to get a reaction out of you."

Angel studied the man infront of him, seeing that same twinkle he associated with the bellboy and others he had seen before. "Is it you?"

"Well, since you don't know who I am, lad, I don't think you can be asking that." The man said. "But yeah, its me."

"I've been looking for you." Angel told him.

"I know." The guy told him. "I've been watching."

"Watching?" Angel raised an eyebrow.

"Part of my job." The man shrugged.

"And what job would that be?" Angel asked.

"To make sure you don't go over the deep end here." The man said. "The Powers are worried about you."

Angel laughed at this. "If they are so worried why did they let this prophecy exsist? Why would they let me kill Connor? Why didn't I get a chance with Cordelia?" Angel was angry.

The man seemed to contemplate what he was going to say. Finally he answered. "There are things going on here that have nothing to do with the Powers. Things I can't tell you about because you're not ready to hear them. But trust me, you're son is safe, and you'll get a chance with the princess yet."

"Princess?" Angel raised an eyebrow. Only a few people had ever called Cordelia that.

"Cordelia." The man said.

"I know who you meant." Angel said, staring the man down. "Who are you?"

"Still can't figure me out?" The man grinned. "Well, you'll know soon enough. Just keep helping the helpless. I won't be seeing you from now on. You'll see me when you're good and ready, then you'll know who I am."

"Wait, what?" Angel was confused.

"Just keeping fighting the fight, boss. Soon enough you'll know who I am, and soon enough this mess with fix itself." The man said, and before Angel could answer vanished.

Angel sat on his bed for awhile after that. He had a feeling he knew who that man was, but he wasn't sure, and he didn't know how much he really cared anymore. He had cared more about knowing that Cordelia and Connor were safe. That little bit of information was enough to sooth the vampire's mind as he drifted off to sleep.

Wesley, Fred, Gunn, and Lorne sat around the lobby of the hotel, rummaging through phonebooks, old files, and any contact information they could find that Angel had stored away. They were hoping he had asked someone to help me stay away from Los Angeles, but so far they had no such luck.

"I hate to be the one to say it…" Fred started. "But do you think Angel might have jumped dimensions? I mean, that way he knew he could never hurt Connor."

Wesley shook his head. "It's unlikely. If he had someone would have heard something about it."

"Maybe we should go to the Powers." Gunn suggested.

"I don't think they are playing for us much anymore." Wesley sighed, putting some papers aside. "Did anyone else notice that Cordelia has been getting less and less visions over the past few months?"

Everyone nodded their head, they had all noticed.

"Maybe they are just giving her a break because the champion isn't here." Fred suggested.

"Or maybe because the champion is dead." Gunn said.

"Gunn!" Fred slapped her boyfriend's arm.

"What? I can't be the only person thinking it." Gunn said. "I mean, Angel loves Connor, more then anything. Knowing that he could possibly hurt him…I don't know."

Lorne nodded. "I have to agree. I've read Angel, his heart belonged to Connor. Well, except for that little bit that belonged to Cordelia, but if he thought he would ever hurt either of them…"

"But would he really kill himself? After all he has worked for? It just doesn't seem right. Plus the prophecy isn't even true." Fred said.

"He doesn't know that." Wesley said. "As far as he is concerned, he is a threat to Connor, and probably the rest of us._ If_ he is alive, he is not anywhere near here. And he probably won't be back anytime soon. I've read plenty on Angelus and I know Angel. If he doesn't want to be found, he won't be."

"Then why are we wasting our time on this?" Gunn said. "If we can't find him, why are we trying to keep everyone's hopes up?"

"Because its Angel." Lorne said.

"But look who is suffering at the cost of us looking for him." Gunn said. "I mean, Cordy can't take this much stress anymore…I don't think she wants to."

"The only thing keeping Cordelia from cracking is the hope that Angel is still out there." Wesley said.

"No." Gunn challenged him. "The only thing keeping her from cracking is Connor and that new baby. Are we going to make her dwell on Angel, when she has so much to look forward to? I mean, she is pregnant, she should be happy about that, and she can't even enjoy it because she feels like she is taking something from Angel if he ever comes back."

"So what do you suggest?" Wesley asked. "We just stop looking?"

"No. Of course not." Gunn said. "We should never stop looking, but we shouldn't devote all of our time to it. We have a business to run, we have to help Cordelia get ready for the new baby, Connor is getting bigger, and the helpless still need us. Angel wouldn't want us neglecting all of that for him and you know it."

Everyone nodded in agreement. They all knew Angel would want them to keep up the work he had started and to take care or Cordelia and Connor, not focus all of their energy looking for him, and that's exactly what they were going to do from now on. If Angel was meant to come back, they all knew he would.

Cordelia had just put Connor down to bed. He had been tired from his adventure today. She had taken him to the mall to shop for the new baby, and all he had wanted to do was go into the toy store and look at trucks.

Cordelia made herself comfortable on the couch with a glass of water and a magazine for expectant mothers. She flipped through the pages, glad for the time alone. It wasn't that she didn't love having Connor around, she did. She was just getting tired between the pregnancy and all of Connor's running around.

Suddenly, Cordelia felt the baby inside of her move. She looked down at her stomach, smiling. "Hey in there, this is not time to start doing gymnastics; I finally got your brother to sleep." She rubbed small circles on her stomach and it seemed to calm the baby down.

"Thanks. Mommy doesn't need to be up all night." She said to her belly. For some reason, she felt obligated to apologize to her unborn baby. "I'm so sorry that you're coming into this world when things are such a mess, and I am sorry you're not going to meet your Daddy." Cordelia looked over at the picture she kept on the coffee table of her, Angel, and Connor. "Your Dad was a good man…pire." Cordelia smiled using Angel's own word for himself.

The baby inside seemed to kick as if it understood Cordelia.

"But, there is a lot of love out here for you. I love you, you're brother loves you, and all of your aunts and uncles love you and we don't even know you yet." Cordelia continued to rub her stomach as she spoke to her unborn child. "And I am going to try and be the best mom I can, okay?"

Cordelia tried to stifle the tears forming in her eyes. She shouldn't be where she was, not at that point in her life. She was so young, and she did not live the kind of lifestyle appropriate for raising children in, especially not alone, not with all the demons and vampires and bad things she knew about. How was she going to do any of it without Angel?

That though continued to plague Cordelia's mind as she cried herself to sleep on her couch.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****12**

Cordelia laid, sprawled out on the couch at the Hyperion Hotel with a bag of chips on her huge stomach. She was six months pregnant now and she looked it. She was grateful that Fred and Gunn had offered to take Connor out to the park for the day because she needed a break from the toddler. He was talking more now, and had even started running, making it harder for her to keep up with him now.

"You look comfy." Lorne commented to Cordelia as he walked past her, carrying a newspaper in one hand, and a sea breeze in the other.

Cordelia smiled up at the demon, titling her head so she could see him. "I am. A little cold though."

"Is that a hint for me to get a blanket?" Lorne smiled at the pregnant seer.

"Would you mind?" Cordelia asked.

Lorne smiled, shaking his head. "Of course not." He moved to the closet, grabbing a blanket and handing it to Cordelia.

"Thanks." Cordelia took the blanket, throwing it across her huge stomach.

"You're in a good mood today. What's up?" Lorne asked.

Cordelia nodded. She had been in a good mood, it was the first time in months she had felt so happy. "Well, the doctor called today."

"Oh?" Lorne asked, taking a seat on the edge of the table. "And?"

"I'm having a boy." Cordelia smiled.

Lorne smiled. "That's great."

Cordelia nodded, squeezing her nose up. "I know. I mean, I know I said I would be happy either way as long as it was healthy, but I kind of wanted a boy."

"Really?" Lorne was surprised. He would have expected Cordelia to want a little girl.

"Yeah." Cordelia nodded. "It will be easier since I'm used to Connor. Plus, I think it will be good for Connor."

"Speaking of…" Lorne commented, looking to the door.

Cordelia lifted her head to see Connor leading Fred and Gunn through the doors of the Hyperion Hotel. He was still a little shaky on his feet, but not enough that he didn't want to walk everywhere.

"Ma!" Connor pointed to Cordelia, making the fastest dash his little legs would allow toward his mother.

"Hey big boy." Cordelia smiled, sitting up.

Connor made an attempt to climb the couch, knowing Cordelia could no longer pick him up.

"Here, buddy." Gunn grabbed Connor, lifting him and putting him on the couch next to his mother.

Connor then stood, wrapping his arms around Cordelia's neck and kissing her on the cheek. "Hi." He said.

Cordelia smiled. "How did you know Mommy needed a hug?"

Connor giggled and then climbed down, rushing into Wesley's office. A minute later Wesley emerged with Connor in one hand, and a wet book in the other.

"Maybe we should get him something to chew on?" Wesley tried not to smile. "Instead of my books?"

Cordelia rolled her eyes, making her way over to Connor and Wesley. "Connor, no eating Uncle Wesley's books."

Connor giggled, looking back and forth between Cordelia and Wesley.

"Sorry Wes." Cordelia said, looking at the wet book Wesley was holding.

Wesley couldn't help but smile. "It's quite alright." He said, shaking his head and putting Connor down. "I haven't used this book in years anyway."

Cordelia nodded, and then turned to Gunn and Fred. "Thank you guys for taking him today."

"No problem." Fred said. "He was an angel."

"Yeah." Gunn knelt so he was eye level with Connor. "We had fun didn't we buddy."

"Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!" Connor seemed to hop up and down with each word.

"Wow." Cordelia looked at Connor and then at Fred and Gunn. "Did my son have some sugar today."

Fred immediately pointed at Gunn. "He gave him the ice cream, not me."

"Thanks baby." Gunn looked back at Fred.

Fred just shrugged. "I don't want to be in trouble for it. I told you it was a bad idea."

"It's not a big deal. If he doesn't sleep, I'll just bring him back here." Cordelia smiled. "How's that sound, Connor? Stay with Uncle Gunn tonight."

Connor giggled, grabbing onto Cordelia's leg and kissing it.

"Move." Wesley said, grabbing Connor and pulling Cordelia.

"Wes? What the…?" Cordelia was confused by Wesley's actions.

"Move! My office!" Wesley shouted, pushing Connor and Cordelia into his office just as a Wolfram and Hart team moved into the lobby of the hotel.

Cordelia saw the swat team as Fred made her way into the office with the mother and toddler. She quickly locked the door behind her and moved to the corner of the room with Cordelia and Connor.

"What the hell do they want?" Cordelia asked.

"What do you think?" Fred looked down at Cordelia's huge stomach and Connor, who was still clutching Cordelia's leg, his thumb in his mouth.

Cordelia swallowed hard as she placed one hand protectively over her enlarged stomach, and another on Connor's head, where she played with the small amount of blonde hair he possessed. A quality that clearly had come from Darla.

Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne were all that stood between Cordelia, Connor, and Fred, and the swat team of at least eight that Wolfram and Hart had sent over. But the boys of Angel Investigations were not about to go down without a fight.

"Lorne!" Wesley said, making his move toward the weapons cabinet with Gunn close behind.

Lorne nodded, hitting the highest note in his range, and causing the unexpected swat team to cover their ears, a few dropping their guns.

"Nice." Gunn smiled, grabbing the flame thrower Wesley had tossed to him, and taking down three of the swat team members at once.

Wesley opted for the bow and arrow, shooting one of the swat team members in the shoulder before bashing the another in the face with the bow.

Lorne took the glass from his sea breeze and knocked another one out, leaving two to go.

"Come on!" Gunn teased the Wolfram and Hart employees. "I am just looking for a fight."

One of the swat team members took off toward the office that Cordelia, Connor, and Fred were in, but Gunn managed to tackle the other to the ground, knocking him out.

Wesley and Lorne both tried to grab the member of the swat team who had run to the office, but they both missed him, and he managed to break through the office window, landing on the floor and holding the gun up to Cordelia, Connor, and Fred.

Fred stepped in front of Cordelia and Connor.

"I'll shoot right through you." The swat team member said. "It's not part of the orders, but it would make my day."

"Yeah?" Fred said. "Well watching you fall on your ass would make mine."

Before the swat team member could react, Gunn had him by the throat and Wesley and Lorne had disarmed him. Gunn then threw him down in the chair in the office as Cordelia with Connor strapped tightly to her leg moved toward Lorne and Wesley.

"You okay?" Wesley asked Cordelia.

Cordelia nodded, but clearly she was shaken up. "Been better."

"Ma…" Connor clutched her leg tightly, somewhere between tears and shock. The toddler was frightened.

"Come here, buddy." Lorne picked Connor up. "You're okay."

"Mama." Connor reached for Cordelia's neck, grasping tightly to her, and Cordelia could not help but pull the child close to her, even though she knew it wasn't good for her to do in her condition.

"It's okay, honey." Cordelia soothed him. "Mommy's got you."

"And I got this one." Gunn looked the swat team member in the eye. "Start talking or I'll start slicing." Gunn waved a knife he pulled out of his back pocket to let the swat team member know he meant business.

"Just here on business." The Wolfram and Hart employee said. "They want the seer and the kid. They know she is pregnant and that's all I got. I just follow orders."

Cordelia was clearly shocked Wolfram and Hart had learned about her pregnancy and didn't know what to say to Gunn when he turned to look at her.

Gunn looked back at the swat team member. "You take a message back to your boss. Anyone comes after Cordelia or Connor again and I will cut them up so fast they won't know what happened, understood?"

The swat team member nodded viciously and took off when Gunn moved aside to allow him. Once the Wolfram and Hart employee was gone, Gunn turned to the rest of the group. "That was not good."

Cordelia shook her head, swaying slightly to calm Connor, herself, and the baby inside of her, who most have felt his mother's panic, because he had begun kicking like a maniac. "I need to go home."

"Home? That's not safe." Lorne said.

"Safer then here." Cordelia said. "They won't just attack a random apartment. Plus, I'm not sure they even know which apartment is mine. They know this hotel inside and out."

"She's right." Wesley nodded. "You should go, Cordelia."

"I'll go with you." Fred offered.

"No, Fred." Cordelia turned, picking up Connor's diaper bag. "You don't have to."

"I want to." Fred said. "It will make me feel better."

"All of us." Gunn said. "We will all feel better, and we will all take shifts over there. You shouldn't be by yourself right now."

"Guys, really, I am fine." Cordelia assured them.

"Don't tell me you can't use the extra set of hands." Gunn raised an eyebrow, knowing how tired Cordelia had been lately with the pregnancy and Connor.

Cordelia thought about it and finally nodded. She could use the help, she wouldn't argue there, plus she knew no one would let her leave unless she agreed to letting them check in on her. "Fine, but not twenty-four hours a day. I need some time to myself."

That was as good as a response as the rest of the gang knew they would get from the pregnant seer so they agreed and Fred helped Cordelia gather Connor's things so they could go back to her apartment.

Angel made his way down to the bar in his hotel. He had wanted to get some vodka to mix in with his blood supply, because lately it had been the only thing keeping his mind off of Cordelia and Connor. He sighed in frustration when he reached the bar only to find that it had closed early for the night.

"Figures…" He mumbled to himself, but decided to go out into the city, knowing he would find at least two drinking establishment within five minutes. He was right, he actually found one within three minutes.

Angel made his way into the dingy bar, and right to the counter, where he waited for the bartender to turn around and serve him.

As he was waiting, Angel looked around the bar. It was not busy, but not dead either. For a Tuesday night in Ireland it seemed just right.

"Can I help you?" The bartender interrupted Angel's thoughts.

Angel turned back to him, about to order his drink, but was cut off by the bartender.

"You're him." The bartender pointed to Angel.

Angel raised an eyebrow. "I'm who?"

"A guy…he was in here looking for you a couple weeks back." The bartender continued.

Angel kept the same look of confusion on his face, indicating for the bartender to continue. "A guy?"

"Yeah…he was a little shorter then you. Older. Had this stupid hat on. A beard." The bartender continued to describe Holtz. "An English accent, but spoke like way out of here, lad. Like from another time or something."

The confused look on Angel's face faded to a stern one. Angel knew exactly who the bartender was describing. "Holtz…"

"I'm not sure." The bartender said honestly. "He didn't leave a name."

"He was looking for me?" Angel asked.

The bartender nodded. "Seemed to be on a mission."

"I'll bet." Angel said, stalking out of the bar before the bartender could say anymore. He was beyond furious that Holtz had come after him, but also a little relieved because that meant Holtz was not back in Los Angeles wreaking havoc over Angel Investigations. He wanted to find Holtz, and finish things once and for all. Now the vampire with a soul had a new mission.

Lilah paced in her office. She had a feeling her plan to get Cordelia and Connor out of the Hyperion Hotel might be a little harder than expected, but she never thought it would have been completely stopped. Esepcially not by a few humans with weapons, Angel wasn't even there anymore.

"Total crap." Lilah said out loud to herself, and then was interrupted by a beep from her computer, signaling she had received an email.

"What now?" She asked herself, moving to her desk to read the email. Suddenly, the lawyers attitude changed, and a grin broke out on her face.

The email had said that the Ireland office of Wolfram and Hart had gotten wind of Holtz' arrival there and were currently on a mission to exterminate the matter. The news was somewhat of a relief to Lilah, since at least some of her plans were going the way they were supposed to. They would take care of Holtz, than take care of Angel, and then soon enough take care of Cordelia and both of Angel's children.

Fred had her way out of Cordelia's kitchen and into the seer's living room to find Connor, leaning on Cordelia's leg as the seer had her feet curled up under her, running a hand over Connor's hair, that was coming in much more now, and much blonder.

"I can't believe he fell asleep. He was so wired at the park today." Fred commented on Connor, taking a seat across from Cordelia.

"Yeah." Cordelia smiled down at Connor, resting one hand on her stomach and rubbing small circles. "He probably was drained after the whole almost getting kidnapped thing today."

Fred nodded, looking down at her hands, and then back up at Cordelia. "But hey, you didn't get kidnapped, so that's a plus."

"This time." Cordelia sighed.

"Cordy…" Fred started.

"I don't want to do this, Fred." Cordelia looked the other woman in the eye. "I'm sick of being strong and pretending I am okay, and I'm sick of trying to pretend I am ready to raise two babies by myself, I'm not ready." The tears formed in Cordelia's eyes.

"Cordelia, you're not alone." Fred told her.

"But I am. I am so alone." Cordelia counter. "I know you guys are there for me, but I am alone. I look at Connor and this baby and realize just how alone I am." She sniffled a bit. "I miss Angel."

"Cordy…I know you do. We all do, but I thought you said you were going to be fine…" Fred reminded the seer.

"I lied." Cordelia admitted. "I'm not fine. How can I be fine? I love Angel and he doesn't know it, and I am carrying his son and he doesn't know that either, and Connor…how do I explain this all to him or this new baby? How do I explain the crazy world we live in with demons and vampires and…these poor babies." She looked down at her stomach and at the sleeping Connor, his thumb in his mouth. "It's not fair to them. They didn't ask for any of this."

"And neither did you, and neither did Angel." Fred reminded her. "No one wanted things to go this way but they are. Now those babies need you, Cordelia. You are all they have right now, so if you can't find any other reason to do this anymore, do it for them. Okay?"

Cordelia nodded, sniffling again and taking a deep breath, trying to control the tears she was wiping up.

Fred's heart broke for the pregnant seer. She realized now just how important it was that they found Angel. Not just for Connor's or the new baby's sake, not even for the sake of Los Angeles, but for the sake of Cordelia. She really did need Angel.

"I think he is gone." Cordelia finally said, breaking Fred's train of thought.

"What?" Fred was confused.

"I think Angel is gone." Cordelia repeated herself, having gotten her emotions under a bit more control.

"Why would you say that?" Fred asked.

"Not one vision." Cordelia said. "Not one vision for him in the past two months. At first, I had a few, remember?"

Fred nodded, recalling that right after Angel had left, Cordelia had had some visions.

"Well, I haven't had a single one now." Cordelia looked down at Connor again. "I think it's because the Powers don't need me anymore, because my champion isn't around to answer the visions…because he is gone."

"He's not dead, Cordy…" Fred tried to assure the pregnant woman, although she was unsure herself.

Cordelia shook her head, the tears in her eyes again. "What if he is."

"He isn't." Fred repeated herself.

Suddenly, Connor jolted from his sleep, causing both Cordelia and Fred to jump.

Connor looked up, blinking his eyes a few times to get the sleep out of them, and then sitting up. He looked over at Cordelia and frowned.

"Ma, you sad?" Connor asked, taking notice of Cordelia's tears.

Cordelia nodded. "A little baby."

Connor climbed up Cordelia's arm, hugging her neck and kissing her. "Why?"

Cordelia kissed Connor's forehead, brushing the little blonde locks out of his eye. "I just miss, Daddy."

"I sorry." Connor seemed to apologize, rolling his little fits into a ball.

Cordelia had to smile at this. "Why are you sorry, sweetie? You didn't do anything wrong."

Connor shrugged his little shoulders. "Da loves you."

Cordelia smiled at Connor, wondering how the child had gotten so smart, and how he always managed to say the right thing at the right time. She did not doubt the smooth talker he would be when he got older. "Thanks."

Connor smiled, and then hopped off the couch, running at Fred, and jumping at her. "Play!"

Fred caught Connor and looked up at Cordelia, wondering if it was okay that Connor be up playing right now.

"Go ahead." Cordelia seemed to know what Fred was wondering. "I am actually going to take a shower, if you don't mind."

"No, take your time." Fred smiled, taking Connor into his room.

Cordelia sat there for another moment, her thoughts drifting back to Angel as she rubbed small circles on her huge stomach. She hoped Fred was right and that Angel was still alive, but every hour that passed made her loss a little more hope in that theory.

Angel made his way down the streets of Dublin, but his mission tonight was much different than previous ones. He would not be helping the helpless or saving the damsel in distress tonight. Tonight, he was ready to finish what Angelus had started centuries ago. Tonight he would find Holtz.

He picked up the scent of the vampire hunter surprisingly quickly. He turned down one alley and then another, and to his surprise and almost amazement, he found Holtz on a cell phone behind what appeared to be a restaurant.

Holtz was busy on the phone and had not noticed Angel, but Angel didn't take that into account. He charged full force at Holtz, knocking him the ground.

Holtz looked up, to see Angel had pinned him down. "Angel?" He was almost shocked to see the vampire.

"You tracked me." Angel growled.

Holtz nodded, under Angel's grasp. "I have to speak to you."

"No. You need to stop this. What I did…there was no excuse for it. But I am not paying for it anymore. Now you leave me alone, and you leave my family alone…" Angel pulled Holtz to his feet.

"But that's what I need to discuss." Holtz tried. "You're family. Cordelia and Connor…"

Angel grabbed Holtz throwing him into a pile of garbage cans. "You don't ever speak their names to me! Understood?" He began stalking off into the shadows. He was done with Holtz

"Angel, please! Just let me explain…" Holtz never finished his sentence as the bullet flew through his chest.

Angel turned, hidden by the dark of the alleyway to see a group of, what appeared to be Irish, Wolfram and Hart swat team members, and two, what appeared to be, lawyers on the scene hovering over Holtz' bleeding body. He watched, knowing none of them had seen him, as they finished Holtz off and then carried the body away, as if it were nothing. As if Holtz had just been another number.

Angel sat there long after Wolfram and Hart had left. He felt numb and confused. Clearly, Wolfram and Hart did have their hands into everything, and Angel did not like that, but what confused him more was why they had just killed Holtz. Wasn't he an alliance to the law firm? Hadn't he tried to help them capture and kill him so many times? Why suddenly, had they wanted the Vampire Hunter dead, and what had Holtz been trying to tell him?

Angel thought for a moment more. Could Holtz have been trying to warn him? Did he have that much humanity in him? Angel doubted it as he made his way back to his inn. He had known Holtz for years, and known the hate he had possessed for both Angelus and himself. He knew that Holtz would never willingly help him, yet Angel couldn't help but feel like he had just missed something important.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****13**

"Connor! Come on!" Cordelia groaned, trying her best to keep up with the toddler. "You know Mommy is in no shape to chase you and we need to get over to the hotel so I am not late for work!" She waddled down the hall, her seven month pregnant, protruding stomach leading the way.

Connor saw her coming and darted from his bedroom door to hers.

"Connor!" Cordelia did not feel like playing this game anymore. "You better stop this right now or you are in trouble." She made her way into her bedroom to find Connor pulling down the clothes in her closet.

"Connor Angel!" Cordelia could not believe the mess he had made.

Connor turned at his name and grinned at her before darting off between her legs. Another month and he would be a year and a half, but he was already running like a two year old.

Cordelia knew she could not keep chasing him from room to room, she would be to tired by the time she got to work to do anything if she did that. Now she wished Fred or Lorne or someone were there. There had not been another attack by Wolfram and Hart since the first, and she had managed to talk the Fang Gang into coming to check on her less and less, but now she definitely needed an extra pair of hands. "Dennis? Where is he?" She called to her ghost.

Dennis slammed the door to Connor's room, and then opened it, letting Cordelia know the toddler had gone in there.

"Thanks Dennis." Cordelia thanked her ghost, waddling into Connor's room, and closing the door behind her so the child had no way out. "Now, Connor, get out from wherever you are. I know you're in here."

"Boo!" Connor jumped out from behind his toy chest, wrapping his arms around Cordelia's legs and giggling.

"No boo, mister." Cordelia scolded him. "I have to get to work, this is not a game."

Connor pouted his bottom lip, and Cordelia knew she had seen that face a million times, every single time Angel had screwed up to be exact. Connor got that look from his father, and that look made Cordelia melt. She could not find it in her to even try and be mad at Connor.

"Oh, you are so lucky you look like you're daddy." Cordelia told him. "Now come on, let's go see your aunt and uncles." Cordelia stretched out her hand so that Connor could take it. Connor did so, and allowed Cordelia to take him out of the apartment so they could head over to the hotel.

Wesley and Lorne sat in Wesley's office while Fred and Lorne were out in the lobby of the hotel blowing up balloons for the surprise baby shower they were throwing for Cordelia. She thought she was coming in to work, Wesley having called her the night before, she had no idea Fred had planned a shower for her.

Fred tied one of the balloons, peering past Gunn to look at Wesley and Lorne in the office. Lorne of the phone, relaying things to Wesley.

"What are you looking at?" Gunn looked over his shoulder, then back at Fred.

"Do you think they found anything yet?" Fred asked.

"On Angel?" Gunn asked.

Fred nodded. "Yeah."

Gunn shrugged. "Beats me. Maybe. I mean, Lorne did say he thought that we had a lead from that guy he read the other night."

"Yeah, but he also said the guy was a scatter brain." Fred reminded him.

"No, _Scatteral_Demon." Wesley emerged from his office with Lorne following. "And no luck. He had no idea who Angel was."

"Then what did you read off him, Lorne?" Gunn asked, a little confused.

"That he was connected to Wolfram and Hart." Lorne sighed. "But he is just a client. Who isn't these days?"

"How's the shower coming along?" Wesley changed the subject, noting all the blue balloons in the lobby.

"It's coming. We don't have a lot of time, Cordelia should be here soon." Fred said, looking over to Gunn. "Go get all the presents out of the spare room upstairs."

Gunn nodded, jumping up the stairs to gather everything they had bought for Cordelia which included a lot of baby clothes, some new clothes for her after the baby, a stuffed bear, and a new bassinet for her to put in her room when the new baby came home.

"So, who else is coming to this shower, sugar?" Lorne asked Fred.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked.

"Did you invite any of Cordelia's friends?" Lorne asked.

"Friends?" Fred raised an eyebrow. "If I knew any of them. The only ones she ever really talked about were from Sunnydale and I didn't think that was a great idea since, you know, the whole Buffy thing."

Lorne nodded, also realizing, especially over the past few months, Cordelia had cut herself off from anyone who remotely resembled a friend besides the members of the Fang Gang. "Yeah, I guess that's true. So it's just us then. No worries, we will make it a party."

Wesley dug his hands into his pockets. "I hope so. We don't need to upset her."

"She will just be happy we are having it for her." Lorne told Wesley. "Cordelia is a doll, trust me."

"Oh, I know." Wesley said. "I just wish we could have gotten Angel back for her."

"We will keep working on it." Gunn called from the top of the stairs, his arms full of presents. "Now can someone help me before I fall on my ass?"

Lorne, Fred, and Wesley all smiled at each other and then moved toward the stairs to help Gunn carry all of Cordelia's presents down to the lobby where they set them up in a corner and finished hanging up all the decorations. They hoped the shower would bring Cordelia out of the slump she seemed to be in, even if only for a few hours.

Lilah had just gotten out of a long meeting with the Senior Partners, and needless to say they were less then pleased with the progress made in the quest for Angelus and Cordelia's child as well as Connor. The only thing they had been happy with was Holtz' death, although it was old news, having happened a month ago.

As if Lilah's afternoon couldn't get worse, she entered her office to find Gavin sitting in her chair, with his feet up on her desk.

"Get out." Lilah told the other lawyer.

"I will once you tell me what went on at the meeting." Gavin gave her a sarcastic smile.

Lilah thought for a second, Gavin hadn't been there. "Why weren't you there?"

"I had some things to take care of." Gavin stood, fixing his tie. "But the Senior Partners told me you would inform me of what went on."

Lilah rolled her eyes. Why did she have to be the one to repeat everything? Was this her punishment. "Well…" she started. "We decided to refocus ourselves. With Holtz out of the picture the Senior Partners want to go after Angel. They think Angelus will be very valuable, not only to our company but to getting to Cordelia and those kids. They feel once we have Angelus we have the key to it all."

Gavin nodded. "It makes sense. Except how do we get Angel? We know he is in Ireland, that's it."

"We also know he is not easy to take down in a fight." Lilah added. "So we have to go about this carefully. We screw this up and Angel will take off and Angelus will then be as good as gone."

"So will we." Gavin added, knowing what the Senior Partners would do to them if they screwed up.

Lilah nodded. "Yeah. So let's get working on this." She hated saying that. Gavin was the last person she would ever want to work with, but she knew she had no choice, she needed him if she was going to find Angel and capture him and please the Senior Partners. Plus, she figured, if they screwed up, Gavin was another person to share some of the blame with.

Buffy sat on her porch, thoughts drifting in and out of her mind. Thoughts of slaying, of high school, of Dawn, of dying, of Angel. Everything always seemed to come back to him. No matter how hard she tried to distance herself from the brooding vampire, she always came back to him. She thought she knew him, knew his love for her, but clearly she had been wrong.

When she first found out Cordelia was carrying Angel's child, Buffy knew she reacted wrong. Not that it mattered now, she knew there was no point in apologizing to Cordelia and also, she really didn't care. She still felt like Cordelia was always trying to compete with her.

"Hey Buf." Xander walked up, throwing the slayer out of her thoughts.

"Hey Xander." Buffy moved aside so he could take a seat next to him.

"What are you doing out here?" Xander smiled awkwardly at his friend. "Its kind of cold and it's the middle of the night and I definitely don't see any big monsters out here."

Buffy turned to Xander. "What are you doing here?"

"Walking around." Xander shrugged. "I was actually going to see if you had those little pizza rolls? I have been starving for them."

Buffy laughed. "Maybe inside."

"Good…good…" Xander stood, as if he wanted to say something else, but didn't know if he should.

Buffy knew Xander too well. "What else do you want to say?"

"Okay, I don't know how to put this so I am just gonna say it." Xander dug his hands into his pockets. "Are you gonna go off the deep end anytime soon? Because we can't handle that again…"

"What?" Buffy was confused. "Why would you ask that?"

"Well, you haven't been acting like the old Buffy." Xander shrugged. "You've been kind of in a fog. I mean, I know you were probably upset about the whole Angel-Cordelia thing, but hey you're bigger than that."

Buffy stood. "No I am not." She decided.

"What?" Xander questioned.

"I'm not bigger than that. I'm not stronger than that." She looked Xander in the eye. "I need Angel."

"Uh…okay?" Xander was confused. "But when you say that you mean…"

"I am going to find him." Buffy stated. "I need to. He is mine."

Before Xander could say another word, Buffy marched into her house to collect a small bag of things to take with her on her journey. She wasn't sure if she really loved Angel anymore, she just knew she couldn't lose him to Cordelia. She had to find him and prove to him that they belonged together. After all, he just thought he was a danger to his own son, not to everyone else, and Cordelia was the one with Connor, so as far as Angel knew, he was safe around Buffy. All she had to do was find him.

Angel hustled down the street in the direction the screams were coming from. Clearly, he was late. He had gotten a note to head to a certain address, but he had been in the shower, so the note had reached him a little later then it should have.

After Holtz' death, Angel had begun fighting the good fight full fledge. He was sure Wolfram and Hart was everywhere and had their eyes on him, but it also meant he needed to protect the people they were harming, just like he had in Los Angeles.

Angel turned the corner to find two girls battling to keep a gang of vampires away from them. Angel ran over to them, ripping to vampires away and standing himself between the girls and the gang of vampires.

"Hey, we got here first." The one vampire told Angel, clearly able to sense that Angel was also a vampire.

"Yeah? Well, now I am moving you out!" Angel grabbed the one who had spoken and tossed him down the alleyway. Two more charged at him, but he pulled out two stakes, taking them both out easily. The two vampires that were left looked at each other, then Angel, and then took off running.

Angel then turned back to the two girls. He would have plenty of nights to catch the rest of those vampires. "Are you okay?"

The girls looked at each other and nodded, but seemed to be a little frightened of Angel, and took off without even saying a word.

"You're welcome!" Angel called sarcastically after the two girls before leaning against the alleyway wall, tossing one stake up in the air and catching it. His thoughts were drifting back to Cordelia and Connor. They always were.

After a moment of brooding Angel stood straight, fixing his duster, about to make his way down the street when he felt a net fall over him. He struggled against it, but the more he twisted and turned, the more he got caught up in it.

"What the hell!" Angel growled, unable to see what was going on.

"How are you doing, Angel?" Lilah asked the vampire as she peered into the net before motioning for two Wolfram and Hart employees to tranquilize the vampire with a soul. She grinned as she watched the drugs kick in and Angel try and fight against them before collapsing in the net. It had been easier to find him then anyone had ever thought. She had hired the vampires and the two girls as bait, and since Angel had killed two of the vampires, the firm would be happy to know they were shelling out less cash. Everyone won, she decided, as she watched the two men from Wolfram and Hart hoist Angel's limp body into the back of a van.

Cordelia managed to get Connor out to walk up to the hotel on his own from her jeep. She had sworn she was going to sell that car but with everything that had happened, getting rid of the impractical vehicle was the last thing on the pregnant seers mind as she waddled up the path to the hotel after Connor.

Connor reached the door to the hotel and turned to Cordelia, holding his hand out for her. "Come, Ma." He told her.

Cordelia smiled, taking in just how truly intelligent Connor was. "Give me a second, baby."

Connor shook his head, hurrying on his little legs toward her. He then stopped in front of her, pointing his finger at her protruding belly. "No, that baby." He then pointed to himself. "Me no baby."

Cordelia realized Connor had been offended. She immediately corrected herself. "I'm sorry, sweetie, you're right. The baby is in Mommy's belly."

Satisfied with Cordelia's correction Connor grabbed her hand and walked with her up to the hotel doors.

Cordelia approached the doors, bracing herself for one of Wesley's rants. After all, she was a half hour late for work. She opened the door and moved into the hotel, watching Connor carefully in front of her so she didn't trip over him with her belly in the way. "I am here!" She called out, but when she looked up, she stood in awe.

Cordelia found herself in a lobby filled with blue balloons and in the middle stood Fred, Lorne, Wesley, and Gunn all smiling with boxes and a basinet next to them.

All at once the members of Angel Inc yelled. "Surprise!"

Cordelia, hormones raging and at a loss for words, immediately broke out into tears. "You guys didn't have to do this!" She was honored that they had thrown her a baby shower.

"Of course we did!" Fred moved forward giving Cordelia a hug with Gunn at her side who was picking Connor up, holding the giggling toddler over his head.

"Yeah, congrats girl." Gunn moved and gave Cordelia a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks." Cordelia smiled wiping up a few stray tears.

"Come down here." Lorne motioned for Cordelia to take a seat on the coach amongst all of the presents and balloons.

Cordelia complied moving to the couch, and smiling up at Wesley who was at the counter. "I thought you said we had work to do today."

"Well…we do. We need to work on you showing up four your own showers on time." Wesley smiled.

"Ma!!" Connor giggled from Gunn's arms, reaching for Cordelia.

"Come here, big boy." Cordelia put her arms out and Gunn sat Connor on the couch beside her.

"Play!" Connor giggled, standing and picking up a balloon which he used to bash Cordelia in the head.

"Hey! No hitting!" Cordelia tried to be stern, removing the balloon from Connor's grasp.

"Yeah, you." Gunn patted Connor on the head. "Let your mom open her presents."

Connor seemed to understand, pouting a little but taking a seat next to Cordelia, leaning his head against her arm.

Cordelia wrapped her arm around Connor and used her other one to pick up a box from the pile of presents.

"That one is from me." Fred said with a smile.

"Thanks." Cordelia smiled up at Fred, unwrapping the box to find a complete outfit for the new baby, consisting of small little jeans and a little baby tee-shirt that said "tough guy" on it. "Thank you so much, Fred. It's so cute."

"You're welcome." Fred smiled, and then moved to grab another box. "And this one is from me and Gunn. It's more for you."

Cordelia opened the next present to find a beautiful running suit.

"It's for after the baby." Gunn explained. "When you start getting back in shape."

Cordelia nodded, her smile still plastered on her face. "It's great. Thank you guys!"

The next box Cordelia reached for was from Lorne. It contained a baby monitor, a stuffed turtle, and two sets of pajamas for the new baby. Cordelia pulled all of the presents out of the box and then turned to Lorne. "This was all great. Thank you."

Lorne bent down, kissing Cordelia on the forehead. "No problem, cupcake."

"Next up, mine." Gunn handed Cordelia a small box, and Connor a matching box.

"Gunn…you already got me something." Cordelia thought of the running suit.

"Nah, girl. That was from me and Fred. This is just from me." Gunn explained, and then motioned to Connor's gift. "And that is for the big brother."

Cordelia watched as Connor tore open his present to reveal a huge blue kick ball. Connor giggled, hugging the ball as if it were the last thing in the world.

"Thank you, Gunn. You didn't have to get Connor anything." Cordelia said.

"Sure I did." Gunn said. "He is the big brother. He should get something. Now open your gift, Cordy."

Cordelia complied opening the box to find a little blue baseball hat and a blue baby blanket. She smiled up at Gunn, remembering she had told him she needed a blanket for the new baby and happy he remembered. "Thank you so much, Gunn."

"Sure thing, girl." Gunn said, catching the ball as Connor tried his best to throw it at him.

"Now, the basinet and the big teddybear are from all of us." Fred pointed to the two things next to the coffee table.

"They are all perfect. Everything is perfect." Cordelia smiled up at her friends, so happy they had cared enough to do this for her.

"I have something for your too, Cordelia." Wesley told her. "It's in the office. Why don't you come with me?"

"Sure." Cordelia stood slowly with the help of Gunn and Lorne.

Wesley picked Connor up, carrying the child as he led Cordelia into his office. "It's on my desk." He motioned to a small box sitting on his desk.

Cordelia moved forward, taking the box in her hand and opening it. Inside she found a small Celtic cross with the word ANGEL written down the middle of it, hanging from a silver chain. Immediately her eyes darted up to Wesley as the tears threatened them.

"I wanted you to always have him with you, no matter what." Wesley said as he felt Connor shift in his arms, trying to get down. "Angel would want that. I figured when we find him, you can take the cross off so you don't burn him, but until then, keep it with you."

Cordelia nodded, trying her best not to cry at her friends caring actions. "Thank you. Wes. This…this means a lot. It is the nicest thing I have ever gotten."

"You're welcome." Wesley smiled back at the seer.

Cordelia took a deep breath, gathering herself before smiling and handing Wesley the necklace. "Can you put it on me?"

"Sure." Wesley said, handing Connor to Cordelia for a moment so he could put the necklace on her. "All done." He said after a second.

Cordelia brought a hand to the cross, feeling it between her fingers. "Thank you, Wes. Really."

"Ma…niceee." Connor pointed to the cross that laid on Cordelia's neck, not knowing it contained the name of his father on it.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****14**

Cordelia fumbled around her apartment, straightening things out the best she could with her protruding belly in front of her. She was a little over seven months now, and she was feeling it. She slowly bent down, picking up Connor's jacket and folding it, using her belly as a folding table.

Suddenly, she felt something grab onto her leg. She looked down to find Connor smiling up at her.

"Ma! Eat!" Connor bared his teeth to Cordelia.

"You're hungry?" Cordelia questioned him. "You just had breakfast a little while ago."

"Eattttt." Connor jumped up and down.

"Alright, relax there." Cordelia the folded jacket down, stretching out and fixing the cross necklace Wesley had give her. She had not taken it off since the shower, and she enjoyed seeing it every morning, Angel's name proudly displayed. "Come on."

Cordelia moved into the kitchen with Connor behind her. The child held his arms up waiting to be lifted into his high chair.

"Dennis?" Cordelia called out to her ghost.

A second later, Connor was being lifted in the air and put in his high chair by Dennis. He giggled as the ghost strapped him into the seat.

"Thanks, Dennis." Cordelia thanked her ghost, knowing she was in no shape to lift Connor. She then went to work on both Connor's lunch and hers. She had not realized just how hungry she was until Connor had said something.

"Mama…Maaaa." Connor giggled, busying himself with the cheerios Dennis had put on the high chair to keep the child busy while Cordelia prepared lunch.

Cordelia glanced over at Connor, smiling. "Do you need anything, babe?"

Connor looked up at Cordelia and proudly pushed forward his hand, showing his mother the cheerio before plopping it into his mouth. "Yummmm." Connor said.

"Well Mommy will have better lunch in a second, just let me…" Cordelia's voice trailed off as the vision hit her.

It took Cordelia a second to realize she was actually having a vision, since she had not had one in over three months, but once she realized what it was, she also realized this vision was far different than anything else she had ever experienced.

In her vision, Cordelia did not see who was in danger, but she was actually in that person's body, or it felt that way anyway. She was seeing through their eyes, and for some reason they felt familiar to her.

Whoever she was seeing through, they were caged in some type of cell, unconscious of the danger they were truly in, but Cordelia could feel that too. Through her mind, she frantically searched the room for a clue, something to tell her where this person was, but she found nothing. Then something in the corner of the room caught her eye A book, sitting on a table; not just any book, a book about laws of other dimensions.

Cordelia realized that whoever she was seeing through was trapped by Wolfram and Hart, but they weren't scared. They seemed empty, numb; they seemed to be giving up on the world around them. Whatever fight they were fighting, they were getting sick of it, and whatever mission they had it didn't make sense to them anymore. Cordelia felt sorry for the person, not only because they were in danger, but because they didn't seem to care.

The vision left as suddenly as it had come. Cordelia was left in shock; she had not had a vision in months, why had the Powers sent her one now? Could it be that Angel were coming back and needed to start his mission again? Cordelia was hopeful of his, as she slid into the chair across from Connor's high chair, emotionally drained. She rubbed small circles on her enormous stomach, knowing the baby inside of her had been upset from the vision.

"Ma?" Connor seemed to be able to tell something was bothering Cordelia. "Ma sad?"

Cordelia snapped her head up, looking at Connor and smiling gently. "No, sweetie. Mommy's just tired."

"Nap?" Connor suggested.

"No nap for me. Mommy needs to get a hold of your uncle." Cordelia said, standing and making her way over to the phone. She needed to call Wesley and tell him about her vision, and then she needed to get herself and Connor ready and go over to the hotel.

Angel felt like he had been run over by an eighteen-wheeler, and then it had backed up over him and hit him again. Every inch of his body was sore. He went to reach for his head, but realized he could not. He opened his eyes to find himself chained up like a dog.

He pulled on the chains, remembering last time he had been tied like this was when he had first come back from hell and Buffy had not known what to do with him. When his eyes adjusted to the brightly lit room, Angel felt a lump form in his stomach. He was in some sort of chamber, in what appeared to be a large medical building, but Angel knew better. He was in a law firm.

"Good to see you again, Angel." Lilah's voice seemed to echo in the large room as she descended from a staircase off to the side. "We were wondering how long it would take you to wake up, but no one guessed it would take a vampire like you a week to come to after that tranq. We must have really upped the dosage."

Angel clenched his jaw, his eyes tracking Lilah's every move as she stepped closer toward him. He then tried to lung out at her, but failed miserably as the chains only pulled him back.

Lilah laughed at the vampire's efforts. "There is a reason we made sure you were locked up good and tight."

"What do you want?" Angel asked, realizing only now that he had lost his shirt somewhere.

"Only to talk." Lilah said. "Well, not to you, more like to your better half." Lilah grinned.

"You'll never get Angelus, don't you get that?" Angel growled, knowing what Lilah wanted.

"I don't think you get it, Angel." Lilah continued to smile. "We don't need you're permission to get Angelus, we just need you, and since you're here and well…not going anywhere for a while." She glanced at his chains. "Then Angelus is as good as ours."

"You don't even know what you would be dealing with by letting him out. He is not just evil, he is diabolical." Angel told her.

"We are well aware, and that's why we are happy we wouldn't be his first targets." Lilah turned making her way back out of the room, but before she got to the bottom of the stairs, she turned back to Angel, grinning. "I wonder if Cordelia would even recognize Angelus at first when he goes after her…" She seemed to ponder for a minute, laughing on the inside at Angel's worried looks at the mention of Cordelia. "I mean…she would probably be so happy to see her champion she would practically feed herself and you're son to her." She shrugged. "Well, I am glad to not be her. Must suck being so close to you, it only makes you more of Angelus' enemy." She then turned and exited.

Angel let out a frustrated growl at his situation. He knew one thing was right, if Angelus got out Cordelia and Connor were as good as dead. They were the only people who really truly meant the world to Angel, and Angelus would despise them for that. He knew he had to figure a way out of the chains and out of Wolfram and Hart as fast as he could, but as he yanked harder and harder on the chains holding him to the wall, Angel realized his chances of that were slim to none.

Buffy stretched out her arms as she grabbed her bag and made her way out of the airport. The flight to Ireland had been far longer then she had anticipated and she was rather tired from it. Still, the Slayer knew she would find what she was looking for here. She knew that Angel would have come back here because he loved it so much, and it was far enough away from Connor that he wouldn't hurt him. She also knew no one in the Fang Gang would ever think to look in Ireland for Angel because Angel did not seem to talk about his motherland the way he used to. If anyone was going to find Angel and get the chance to be with him, it was her, not Cordelia.

Buffy made her way into the city of Dublin, wondering if Angel would have stayed here or gone back to Galloway. Regardless, she decided she was too tired to wander in search of the vampire tonight, that would have to wait until tomorrow, so she made her way into a small inn.

"Can I help you, love?" The man at the front desk asked.

"I need a room for the night." Buffy said.

"Ahh another American." The man smiled at Buffy.

"Another?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." The man's eye seemed to winkle and Buffy thought for a second she had met him once before, but she couldn't put her finger on when or where. "Big fellow, dark hair, doesn't smile a lot."

"Sounds like the guy I am looking for." Buffy said, immediately knowing the man was describing Angel.

"You're looking for him?" The man asked, but seemed to already know the answer to that question.

Buffy nodded. "What room is he in?"

"Uh…third floor, fourth room on the left." The man said.

Buffy turned to make her way to the elevator, but the man's voice caused her to stop.

"But he's not up there." The man said.

Buffy turned back to the front desk. "What do you mean? Did he go out?"

"Uh…you could say that." The man shrugged. "Headed over to a law firm I think."

"Law firm?" Buffy was slightly confused. What was Angel doing at a law firm? Then she suddenly remembered that Angel had spoke of a law firm back in Los Angeles that had been giving him problems over the past few years, although she couldn't think of the name of it. She wondered if it was the same one. "Do you know which law firm?"

"Uh…" The man seemed to contemplate what he was going to say next. "Yeah. Wolfram and Hart I think?"

Buffy recalled the name the minute the Irishman said it. It was the same law firm that had been after Angel back in L.A. "Do you know where that building is?"

The man nodded. "Five blocks north of here."

"Thanks." Buffy said, making her way quickly out of the inn, knowing that if Wolfram and Hart was involved things were not going good for Angel.

The man at the counter sighed, running a hand over his face as he watched Buffy exit, and then looked up to the sky. "You Powers will owe Angel at the end of this all, big time because I can guarantee you that slayer is the last person he wants to see right now."

Cordelia made her way into the hotel with Connor tugging her by the hand toward through the door. Lately, he had been moving much faster on his little short legs then she had with her enormous stomach. She looked around to find no one in the lobby.

"Wesley? Fred? Gunn? Lorne?" Cordelia called out as Connor let go of her hand and made his way quickly over to the new toy truck Gunn had bought him last week.

"Cordelia?" Wesley called out, stepping out from the office with Fred behind him. "Is something wrong?"

"I had a vision." Cordelia told them, placing a hand on her back to support her huge stomach.

Wesley seemed surprised. "A vision?"

Cordelia nodded. "Yeah."

"Here, Cordy…" Fred helped the pregnant seer toward the couch. "Sit down."

Cordelia eased into the couch, passing Fred a thankful smiling for the help before taking a deep breath and trying to situate herself comfortably which was getting more and more difficult every day as her belly grew. She wasn't sure if she would last two more months.

"Let me get Gunn and Lorne." Fred suggested. "They should probably hear about the vision too."

"Good idea." Wesley said as Fred moved toward the basement.

"Where are those two anyway?" Cordelia asked, rubbing circles on her stomach as she watched Connor drive his little toy truck into the wall with great strength and then giggle when it bounced off the wall back at him.

"The basement." Wesley said. "They were trying to get some of Angel's stuff out of…" Wesley caught himself, seeing the look on Cordelia's face at the mention of Angel's name. She looked like she was about to cry. "Uh…they wanted to just reorganize the weapons cabinet."

Just then the basement door busted open and Gunn, Lorne, and Fred made their way over to Cordelia.

"So you had a vision?" Gunn asked, taking a seat on the table in front of Cordelia.

Cordelia smiled weakly and nodded at Gunn, glancing over his shoulder so she didn't have to look at him. His body language and the way he was not sitting in front of her, ready to listen, reminded her so much of how Angel used to be when she told him she had a vision. "It was weird."

"What did you see, sugar?" Lorne asked.

"Ma!" Connor pointed at Cordelia, noticing how everyone was now crowded around her, and not liking that he was not a part of it. He seemed to puff his chest out with a little breath and made his way through Wesley's legs to climb up on the couch next to Cordelia. He then looked up at Cordelia with a look that matched Angel's concerned look. "You kay?"

Cordelia couldn't help the tears in her eyes at Connor's actions, between the hormones, the way he looked exactly like Angel, and how she found it so cute that he was so worried about her, she knew a few tears would make their way from the corner of her eyes whether she liked it or not. She smiled down at Connor. "Yeah, I'm okay, sweetie."

Connor seemed satisfied with her answer but did not make a move to get off the couch. He was next to Cordelia and there he would stay.

"What did you see?" Wesley repeated Lorne's question from earlier.

"I don't know." Cordelia said. "It wasn't really so much what I saw. I mean, I saw some room in Wolfram and Hart. I know that much, but…" She seemed to search for the words. "It was what I felt. I didn't see who was in danger, but I felt what they did, and they weren't scared, they weren't angry, they weren't anything. It was like they were just there, like they didn't care." She looked up to catch Gunn's eye. "It was like a knew them so well and yet not at all…"

"Well, not much of a lead." Gunn stood. "But knowing it is at Wolfram and Hart doesn't hurt." He moved to the weapons cabinet. "We should get moving." He tossed a sword to Lorne and a crossbow to Wesley, before grabbing himself a sword. "Fred, you and Cordy stay here until we get back okay?"

Fred nodded and Cordelia sighed, leaning back into the couch with an arm around Connor who was busy playing with a button on his shirt, as Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne made their way out of the hotel and over to Wolfram and Hart, not really sure what they would find.

Angel continued to struggle with the chains holding him in the basement of the Irish Wolfram and Hart. He knew it was only a matter of time before Lilah came back down with a way to get Angelus out of him and he could not let that happen. Still, he wasn't sure how getting out of his chains would work either. He had been trying for a few hours now and still they had not budged.

Suddenly, Angel heard the door to the top of the stairs open and he began tugging even harder, afraid that Lilah was coming down and Angelus would be back faster than Angel could blink. "Damn it!" He growled, feeling defeated as the chains stayed firmly intact.

Angel looked up as he heard the footsteps descending the stairs getting louder, but then he heard something else, a few grunts and a loud noise, as if something fell. The next thing Angel knew Lilah was being thrown from the stairwell across the room, landing a few feet away from him. Stunned, Angel turned back to the stairs to see who had done such damage to the lawyer. He was in shock at who he saw.

"Buffy?" Angel watched as the slayer strode toward him.

"You are so lucky I was smart enough to come here and find you." Buffy say, using her slayer strength to easily yank the chains that had been holding Angel in place.

"What are you…how…" Angel was so confused.

"I'll explain it all once we get you out of here, not let's go." Buffy helped Angel up, tossing him his shirt that had been put on a chair a few feet from them and leading him up the stairs and out the backdoor of the building before Lilah or anyone else at Wolfram and Hart had the chance to react.

Angel and Buffy ran the few blocks back to the hotel, and up the three flights of stairs at the hotel to Angel's room.

Once inside, Angel shut the door, making his way over to the bed and sitting on it. Silence followed for a moment before Angel spoke. "You shouldn't be here."

"What?" Buffy raised an eyebrow. "Didn't I just save your undead butt?"

"You don't understand." Angel sighed. "I could hurt you. I am dangerous."

Buffy's heart almost broke for Angel, knowing he still fully believed in the prophecy, but it didn't quite break. That false belief in that false prophecy was the only way Buffy would not lose Angel to Cordelia. "I know all about the prophecy, how dangerous you are."

Angel looked up to see Buffy leaning against the wall. "You do?"

Buffy nodded, knowing this was the part where her best acting skills would come in. She needed Angel to still believe in the prophecy so she had a chance to keep him, but she also needed him to believe he was no danger to her, otherwise, she knew, he would leave. "Giles told me. We went to L.A. after to confirm it all with Wesley."

Angel looked back down at his hands. "Oh."

Buffy moved toward Angel, kneeling in front of him. "But you can't hurt me."

Angel glanced at Buffy.

"That prophecy was about you and your son, not you and the slayer." Buffy told him, not really feelings to terrible about not telling him the prophecy was false. "The only person you are a danger too is Connor, and I guess Cordelia because you left him with her."

Angel sighed, closing his eyes as if hearing Connor or Cordelia's name tore him apart. "Did you see them?" He opened his eyes, waiting for an answer.

"Cordelia and Connor?" Buffy asked.

Angel nodded.

Buffy took a deep breath. "Yeah, I saw them. When I went to Los Angeles."

"How are they?" Angel asked, really wanting to know. He had been so worried about them the past few months. He thought about it, he had been gone so long, Cordelia was probably only a few weeks away from having her baby.

"They are good." Buffy said.

"Connor?" Angel asked.

"He was getting bigger. He seems very smart." Buffy said, and then thought maybe about adding some fuel to the fire. "But Cordelia has him calling her Mom already."

"He is talking?" Angel was more surprised at that then what he was calling Cordelia. Truthfully, he knew Cordelia was the closest thing Connor was ever going to get to a mother, whether he had stayed in L.A. or not. He actually was kind of happy about it.

"Yeah." Buffy nodded, feeling defeated that Angel didn't care what Connor was calling Cordelia.

"And how is Cordy? How is she doing with the pregnancy?" Angel asked.

Buffy thought for a moment, wondering how Angel had known about Cordelia's pregnancy and then remembering he thought the child she was carrying was someone else's. He did not know it was his. "She is good. She seems happy about the new baby."

"Is Groo still around?" Angel asked.

"Groo? Groo who?" Buffy asked.

"The guy Cordelia is having the baby with." Angel said, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh…" Buffy shook her head. "No."

"What?" Angel seemed enraged.

Buffy jumped back at how angry Angel had just gotten. "Well, it's not like Cordelia is the easiest person to be around…"

"I knew he was no good for her." Angel stood and paced, ready to rip the Groosalugg's face off. "So he knocked her up and then left her to raise his child." Angel stopped for a second, thinking. He had kind of done the same; he had left her to take care of Connor. He sighed, sitting back down, he was no better than the Groosalugg.

"Angel…" Buffy took a hold of his hand, causing him to look up at her. "Cordelia is doing fine, and so is Connor. They are happy and you can't hurt them if you are here. Trust me."

After a moment Angel smiled at her slightly, putting his hand on top of hers. "I do."

"Good, because I am here for you. We are going to get through this all together. No one said we couldn't save the world here in Ireland, _together_." Buffy half smiled, knowing she had gained his trust only through lying to him, but still she could tell in the way he asked, he cared about Cordelia on some level she had never imagined. This only confirmed her belief that if he knew the truth, that if he knew the prophecy was false, she would lose him to Cordelia forever. She couldn't let that happen.

Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne made their way up the steps to the main entrance of Wolfram and Hart. They figured their best way of getting inside would be to walk right through the front door, considering Angel was no longer a threat and it was daylight out, they had a feeling security would be a little more relaxed than usual.

As expected, they had little trouble entering the building, making their way right through the front doors.

"Now what?" Gunn whispered to Wesley, noticing that there was still a decent amount of security that they needed to get through.

"Easy as pie, sugars." Lorne said, smiling up at a young woman who had just walked in behind them. "Sarah!"

The girl turned to Lorne and smiled back. "Hey!"

"I just wanted to tell you what a great performance you had last week." Lorne said as the Sarah walked over to them. "Really touched me."

"Thanks." Sarah replied.

"Anyway, these are my friends Gunn and Wesley." Lorne motioned to Gunn and Wesley. "And we are having such a hard time getting in. Security won't let us through, but we really need to meet with uh…" He looked to Wesley for some help.

"Miss Morgan." Wesley jumped in.

"Really?" Sarah looked at security and frowned and then looked back to Lorne, Wesley, and Gunn. "Well just come with me, don't bother with security."

Lorne smiled back at Gunn and Wesley who both looked shocked before all three followed Sarah to the elevator.

"So, Miss Morgan?" Sarah said, clicking the button for the sixth floor on the elevator. "What is she doing for you?"

"She uh…" Lorne was getting caught up on his own tongue.

"My lawyer. I got into some stuff…" Gunn lied.

Sarah nodded, that was a good enough excuse for her, as the elevator door opened. "Well, good luck!" She waved to the three men. "See you soon, Lorne."

"Sure thing, sweetie." Lorne waved back to her as she got off and the door closed behind her.

"What was that about?" Gunn asked.

"She sang for me a few weeks ago. Brilliant girl." Lorne said.

"Yeah, too nice to be working here." Gunn said.

"Well, she will be done here in a month or so, from what I read." Lorne replied. "But anyway, we are in so let's do this."

"Cordelia said the basement." Wesley looked for the button on the elevator a pushed it, feeling the elevator begin its decent.

A few minutes later the elevator door swung open and Lorne, Wesley, and Gunn charged out, weapons in hand, ready to do battle, but they found an empty room.

"What the hell?" Gunn looked around. The room seemed kind of like what Cordelia described, but it was empty.

"Maybe we are too late?" Lorne asked.

"No." Wesley said, looking around, moving his finger across the edge of a table and picking up dust. "I'm not sure this place has been used in years."

"So what? Cordelia's vision was a bust?" Gunn asked.

Wesley glanced around. "Maybe. Maybe it was a rerun of something. She has gotten them once or twice before. Or maybe…" He looked down. "Maybe the stress of it all is getting to her. The pregnancy, Connor, Angel being gone, the fact that she hasn't had a vision in months…"

"Enough to push someone over the edge a little." Lorne had to agree. "Even someone as strong as Cordelia."

"Maybe we should keep an eye on her for a little." Gunn suggested.

"Yeah." Wesley sighed, moving back to the elevator. "Let's go."

The three members of the Fang Gang boarded the elevator, none of them aware that Cordelia's vision was very recent and very real just it had not happened at the Wolfram and Hart in L.A. but rather the one in Ireland, not that it was their fault. How were they supposed to know Cordelia's vision was about Angel? And either way it had been taken care of, Buffy had saved him.

Cordelia sat on the couch in the hotel watching Connor as he played with his toy trucks on the floor with Fred. He continued to bash his truck into the front of the one he had given Fred to play with and then would make a big crashing sound as the trucks collide, just to prove how smart he was for his age.

Fred glanced up at Cordelia to see the seer rubbing circles absentmindedly as she stared down at Connor, her thoughts clearly somewhere else. "Cordy?"

"Huh?" Cordelia looked over at Fred.

"Are you okay?" Fred asked honestly. "You seem kind of out of it since the vision."

Cordelia shrugged, looking down at her huge belly, a permanent reminder of Angel. "Just tired, I guess. This pregnancy is really taking its toll on me."

"Well, not much longer." Fred told her, getting her finger caught between her toy car and the one Connor was ramming into her's. She winced, pulling her finger out quickly. "Ouch!"

"Okay, enough of that game." Cordelia said, looking over at Connor. "Connor, come sit with Mommy, I need a hug."

Connor stood proudly, and climbed the couch to wrap his little arms around Cordelia's big belly. "Love baby." He said, and then looked at Cordelia. "Love Ma."

Cordelia smiled, running her hand over Connor's head. "And Mommy loves you." She kissed him on his forehead as he sank into the couch next to her, allowing her to wrap her arm around his shoulder as he leaned against her side, sucking his thumb.

"Still…" Fred returned to the conversation. "Are you okay?"

Cordelia sighed, looking up at Fred. "Honestly?"

"Yeah." Fred nodded. She was truly concerned with the seer.

Cordelia shook her head. "I am scared. I am tired and I am scared and I am all alone…" Her eyes swelled with tears.

"What? Cordy, you're not alone." Fred tried to tell her. "You still have me and Wesley and Gunn and Lorne and Connor…"

"But I am alone." Cordelia said. "This baby…" She looked at her stomach, and then glanced at Connor. "Connor…they don't even have a father in their lives, and now I have to be everything for them, and I don't know if I can."

"You can because you are one of the strongest women I know, Cordelia." Fred said truthfully. "And you'll do it because you love this baby and Connor and because you believe in the mission. You know Angel wouldn't want to see you sad."

"Angel would want to be here." Cordelia said bitterly. "But because of some stupid lawyers and a stupid fake prophecy, he doesn't get the chance…"

"We're going to get Angel back." Fred told the pregnant seer. "It's going to happen."

Just then the doors to the hotel busted open and Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne came through, tossing their weapons into the weapons cabinet and moving over toward Cordelia and Fred.

"We got a problem." Gunn said, sitting on the table and putting his hands on Fred's shoulders.

"Were you too late?" Cordelia asked.

"No, we were there, but you're vision wasn't, sweetie." Lorne told her, moving to the counter to make himself a seabreeze.

"What?" Cordelia seemed shocked.

"Cordelia, are you certain your vision took place tonight at Wolfram and Hart?" Wesley asked, cautiously, not wanting to upset her and knowing it took very little to do that nowadays.

"Yes, I am positive." Cordelia said, looking between Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne and realizing none of them believed here. "What do you all think I made it up for something?"

"It's not that…we all just wonder if you are in the right frame of mind for this right now, Cordelia…" Wesley began to explain.

Cordelia stood as quickly as her stomach would allow her. She was fired up as she pointed into Wesley's face. "No, I am not in the right frame of mind for this…I'm going to be a single mother to two of the most sought after children on the planet by every evil thing, I'm newly part demon, which I am still getting used to, I am tired, and scared, and I love Angel, and I never got the chance to even tell him!" She was somewhere between tears and anger by the time she finished.

"We understand all that, Cordelia…" Wesley said.

"Do you?" Cordelia snapped. "Calling me crazy? Saying I made up my vision?"

"Well, it wasn't there." Gunn stood. He was concerned about pissing Cordelia off but he was more concerned about her state of mind. "What are we supposed to think?"

"You're supposed to trust me!" Cordelia almost screamed at Gunn. She then took a deep breath. "You know what? Forget it. I don't need this." She turned to Connor offering him her hand. "Come on, Connor."

Connor complied, hopping off the couch and taking Cordelia's hand as she led him to the front door.

"Cordelia, where are you going?" Fred asked.

"Home." Cordelia turned around as Connor grabbed onto her leg. "And I don't know when I will be back. Maybe when I am not _crazy_." She glared at Gunn, Wesley, and Lorne.

"Cordy, we didn't say…" Gunn started.

"Save it." Cordelia told him bitterly. "I am done here. Just leave me alone. I don't need any of you." She then shuffled out the door with Connor still holding onto her leg.

Gunn went to move to go after Cordelia, but Lorne stopped him.

"Let her go." Lorne said. "We hurt her."

Gunn looked down at his hands, then back up. "She said she isn't coming back. We can't not go after her."

"Cordelia needs her space. She has a right to be angry; maybe we should just let her be." Lorne suggested.

"Yeah, except this is not a good time for that. She is pregnant and alone, and like she said, Connor and that new baby are targets." Gunn reasoned.

"She won't let us anywhere near her if she doesn't want us." Wesley seemed to know Cordelia so well, maybe from working with her the longest out of them all. "It's useless."

Silence fell over the Hyperion Hotel as the remaining members of the Fang Gang realized just how much they had screwed up.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER ****15**

Angel moved down the alleyway with Buffy a step behind. They had heard screaming while they were down the street at a bar, breaking up a fight, so the vampire and slayer took off. They had been fighting side by side for the past three weeks, and Angel had been starting to feel good about it. He felt like he was really getting back into the swing of things, he was still fighting the good fight.

"Angel! There!" Buffy pointed ahead to a two vampires surrounding two young boys.

The children reminded Angel of Connor which in turn made him extremely angry and protective. He quickly lunged at the vampires, ripping them away from the boys. While he held the vampires against the wall he turned to Buffy. "Get them out of here!"

Buffy nodded, quickly picking up both boys and moving them out of the alleyway, leaving Angel alone to defeat the vampires.

"What the hell man?" The one vampire asked, his American accent present.

"Well, you're not from around here, are you?" Angel whispered in the vampire's ear.

"Here traveling." The other vampire said under Angel's grasp.

"Well, sorry to cut the trip short then." Angel said, pulling a stake out and managing to hit both vampires before either could react. He then put the stake back in his pocket and turned to see Buffy coming back down the alley.

"You take care of it?" Buffy asked.

Angel nodded. "All done. Did you get those boys out of here?"

"Yeah." Buffy smiled, moving in and wrapping he arms around Angel's waist, clearly looking for a kiss. "We make some team, don't we?

"Yeah." Angel smiled back down at her, but was not about to kiss her. He liked having her company but he could not get his mind off of Cordelia. He knew in his heart he stilled loved his seer, he always would, no matter how many miles apart they were. "Come on, let's call it a night." He broke apart from Buffy and shoved his hands in his pockets, making his way back out of the alley.

Buffy stood there, clearly frustrated with Angel. He had been like this since she had gotten there. It seemed that all he wanted from her was a friendship, and that had never happened between them before. Buffy was not really sure how she felt about that as she followed Angel out of the alley.

Cordelia slowly eased herself out of bed. She was eight months pregnant now and completely looked it. Everything had become a hassle from putting her shoes on to cleaning the dishes, and trying to keep up with Connor was a nightmare. The worst part was she had no help. Aside from Dennis who was doing all he could for the pregnant seer, Cordelia had no one. She had not stepped back in the hotel since she had burst out of there three weeks ago, and she would not answer anyone's calls. Wesley, Gunn, Lorne, Fred, they had all left her messages, and she had ignored every single one of them. She was still upset about what they had said to her.

"Mom!" Connor busted into her bedroom.

"Yeah, baby?" Cordelia slowly got off of her bed, using it as support to move her body weight. She then put one hand on her back and the other on her swollen stomach to help balance herself. She looked down at Connor, wondering how he had gotten himself up and dressed, but then she concluded that Dennis must have helped him out.

"You want?" Connor pulled a bag of chips out from behind his back. He had been doing his best to help her out, and knew she was hungry a lot.

"Thanks sweetie." Cordelia smiled at the toddler's action, fighting back the tears that her hormones liked to throw out to her every single day now. "But let's bring those back in the kitchen and make some real breakfast, okay?"

"Kay." Connor said, taking Cordelia's hand as if to help her down the hall and into the kitchen.

Cordelia took the toddler's hand and waddled down the hallway as fast as she could, which was not fast at all. She knew she needed an extra set of hands around the apartment besides Dennis, but she did not want anyone from the Fang Gang there. She wanted Angel, and she knew that was impossible.

Wesley and Lorne sat at the front counter, Wesley over his computer, while Lorne was busy playing with the straw in his sea breeze, as Fred busily cleaned the lobby of the Hyperion and Gunn tossed a ball up in the air, catching it right before it hit the couch next to him. There was a tense feeling in the air as the silence built up in the room.

Finally, Fred couldn't take it anymore. "Did you call her today?" Fred looked over at Wesley.

"Cordelia?" Wesley asked, although he knew who Fred was talking about.

"Yeah." Fred seemed annoyed by Wesley's question.

Wesley nodded, sighing and fixing his glasses. "Yes, I called her. Just like I call her every day since she left. No answer."

"You think she is okay?" Gunn asked. "I mean, I know Cordelia can get mad sometimes, but she has been mad for weeks now, and like…she is ready to have that baby soon. She shouldn't be left alone."

"Maybe someone should go check on her." Lorne suggested, looking around the room.

No one volunteered. No one wanted to be the first to experience Cordelia's wrath.

"Maybe we will just give her a few more days." Wesley said.

"The best thing we can do now is just look for Angel." Gunn said.

Just then the phone rang, causing Fred to jump. "Do you think that's her?"

Wesley shrugged, picking up the phone and hoping it was Cordelia. "Hello?"

The rest of the Fang Gang waited for Wesley's response, only to be disappointed when he spoke next.

"Hello, Giles…" Wesley spoke into the phone." Wait…what?" The look on Wesley's face changed. "Really…I see…" The rest of the Fang Gang stood, making their way closer to Wesley. "No…no thank you. Yes, keep me up to date. Yes, I will let you know if I hear anything…okay…okay…goodbye, Giles." Wesley hung up.

"What was that about?" Gunn asked.

"It was Giles." Wesley leaned over the counter, pulling his glasses off to wipe his eyes before speaking next. "It seems Buffy has been missing for the past few weeks."

"Missing?" Fred raised an eyebrow.

Wesley nodded. "At first, Xander told Giles she had just gone to take care of some family business, but the vampire activity in Sunnydale has gotten worse since then and Xander was forced to tell the truth."

"Which is…" Gunn looked for an answer.

Wesley looked Gunn straight in the eye. "Buffy went to find Angel."

Silence filled the lobby for a second, and then Lorne broke it.

"Maybe that's good." Lorne suggested. "Maybe she will bring our Angelcakes back."

"Or she won't." Wesley sighed. "Buffy still loves him, and she has always had a problem with Cordelia…"

"You think she will just screw things up with this whole situation." Gunn realized what Wesley was trying to say.

"But Angel isn't stupid." Fred said. "Do you think he would fall for something like that?"

"He has no reason not to." Wesley explained. "Buffy has been nothing but truthful with him in the past."

"Well, that means we gotta find that slayer and find Angel." Gunn said.

The rest of the Fang Gang nodded in agreement, realizing that with each passing day the entire Angel situation was getting worse and worse. Each wondered, but would not say it out loud, if they were going to lose this battle; if Angel was lost to them, to Cordelia, to his children, for good.

Lilah knew she was in trouble. She had let Angel walk out of the Wolfram and Hart of Ireland over two weeks ago. The only thing she had going for her was that the Senior Partners thought he was still tied up in that basement. It was only a matter of time, however, that they would find out the truth, and Lilah knew that. That is why she needed a plan.

"I need to get Angel back in here…" She mumbled to herself, sitting at the desk in the office the Irish Wolfram and Hart had given her.

Lilah thought long and hard. Maybe she should just get rid of Angel completely, tell the Senior Partner's they had no choice but to put him down. She knew they wouldn't be too happy about that but they wouldn't care too much. Either way Angel would be out of their way.

Then Lilah thought about the Slayer. She had been the one to save Angel would react if he knew was in danger. Still, from what Lilah had seen, Buffy had been more anxious to rescue Angel then Angel had been to have her come in and save him. He didn't really seem too thrilled to see the Sunnydale Slayer.

Then Lilah thought back to Los Angeles. There had been exactly two times she had seen Angel go completely nuts about something Wolfram and Hart did. The first had been when she had given Cordelia the visions that had left the seer burnt, boiled, and cut. The second had been when Wolfram and Hart had sent lackeys after Connor right after the child was born. Lilah smiled; maybe Cordelia and Connor were the links that broke Angel's chain after all.

Cordelia was sitting on the couch in her living room watching TV, one hand rubbing circles on her enormous belly and the other gently wrapped around a sleeping Connor who had curled himself up into a ball on the couch next to her, vigorously sucking his thumb as he slept.

Cordelia gently put her legs up on the coffee table. Everything hurt, and she could barely get her shoes on anymore, but her feet were cold. "Dennis?" Cordelia whispered, keeping the TV lower then her voice. She did not want to wake up Connor.

As if Dennis knew what she wanted a pair of socks came flying through her air and were on her feet in no time.

"Thanks, Dennis." Cordelia said warmly to her ghost. If it wasn't for him, she wasn't sure what she would have done.

Suddenly, the phone in the kitchen rang, causing Cordelia to jump and Connor to wake up.

"Great." Cordelia said, looking over to see a cranky Connor rubbing his eyes. Clearly the child did not like that his nap had been invaded.

The phone rang again.

"Ma!" Connor grumbled, reminding Cordelia of Angel when he was woken a few hours before planned.

Cordelia looked at Connor and sighed. She did not want to get up and answer the phone, plus she had a pretty good idea who was on the other end of the line and she was still not ready to talk to anyone from the Hyperion.

Two more rings and the machine picked up. Wesley's voice filled the room, causing Connor to perk up. The child had missed being around the hotel and his aunt and uncles, so hearing Wesley's voice seemed to calm him.

"Cordelia, its Wesley…" Wesley's voice started on the machine.

Immediately, Cordelia sat up. Something was wrong. She could hear it in Wesley's voice.

"I…uh…look I know you are still angry but we really want…we need to talk to you, Cordelia. We are all sorry…" Wesley continued.

"Yeah right." Cordelia snorted at her answering machine.

"But there is something else…" Wesley's voice continued over the machine, far from stern and steady. "Giles…he called the hotel today…" Wesley's took a deep breath, that sounded even louder over the answering machine. "Buffy is missing…"

"Big deal." Cordelia rubbed Connor's little tummy. "Right? The mean lady is missing…we are sad, huh?"

Connor giggled, pushing Cordelia's hands away.

"It seems that she…" Wesley continued. "Well, Giles suspects she has gone to look for Angel."

Cordelia froze, all of the emotion in her face draining out. Buffy had gone to find Angel. Cordelia could only imagine what would happen if Buffy did find him. She knew that if the slayer got to Angel, there was a good chance Cordelia would never see her champion again.

"Just…uh…call us back, or come over, or something." Wesley said, before hanging up the phone, causing Cordelia's answering machine to click.

Cordelia sat perfectly still for a moment, her eyes slowly swelling with tears. This couldn't be happening; Buffy could not have gone after Angel. The slayer wanted nothing more than to take Angel from the her, and Cordelia knew that.

"Mommy?" Connor climbed the couch, taking Cordelia's cheeks in his little hands.

Cordelia out her hands on top of Connor's and began sobbing uncontrollably, holding onto Connor like he was the last thing that matter, and right now he was. He and the child inside of her were all she had left of Angel; maybe all she would ever have left.

Angel and Buffy made their way back into the hotel Angel had called home for months, and Buffy was starting to feel comfortable in. Buffy smiled as Angel held the door opened for her, she had him right where she wanted him. Soon enough, he would be hers, and Cordelia and Connor would only be distant memories from a past where he did not think he belonged anymore.

Buffy strolled to the stairwell with Angel a step or two behind her. She opened the door, when a voice startled her.

"Uh, Mr. Angel?" The man working the front desk called out.

Angel turned on his heel. "Yeah?"

"Ye mind coming here for a minute? I need to talk to you 'bout something?" The man's brogue was thick.

Angel looked at Buffy who shrugged. "Give me a minute."

Buffy nodded. "Fine. I'm going to go jump in the shower."

Angel nodded. "Okay." He watched Buffy make her way up the stairs and then he made his way over to the front desk. "Is there a problem?"

"Not yet, there isn't." The man said, and the twinkle in his eye let Angel know exactly who it was. It was the mystery-man who had come to him in the forms of the people at the airport, and the bellboy. It was the guy who had put him back on track with his mission.

"It's you." Angel said matter-of-factly. "I thought you said you weren't going to come back until the time was right?"

"I wasn't." The man said.

"So, I guess that means the time is right?" Angel raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yes and no." The man sighed. "It's complicated…there are forces workin' here."

"So, that means…" Angel was growing tired of the cryptic messages. He had never really been a fan of them; that had always been Wesley's forte.

"The original reason I am here…still can't tell ye, but now the Powers seem to have 'nother reason for me to come." The man said, leaning against the desk. "Not as important as the first but…"

"What?" Angel asked.

"Is that Slayer really the answer?" The man nodded toward the stairs Buffy had just ascended.

"What do you mean?" Angel was slightly confused.

"Is she what you really want?" The stranger asked.

"Buffy is helping me fight here . I can't hurt her." Angel said quickly. "You do remember those missions you kept sending me on, right?"

The man nodded. "Oh, I remember. But those were _your_ missions, not hers."

"She's helping me." Angel said. The truth was, he knew Buffy wasn't supposed to be in Ireland, but he liked having a familiar person around.

"She doesn't belong here." The man said. "She isn't the answer you're lookin' for."

"The answers I want I won't ever get." Angel growled. "I want my son and I want my seer and I can't have either of them because of these damn Powers and stupid prophecies."

"In time…" The man started like he wanted to say something and then stopped.

"In time what?" Angel growled. "In time I'll get over being taking away from my son and the woman I…" Angel's voice trailed off as he thought of Cordelia, and then it thundered back. "The woman I love? Or in time my son will grow and forget me and my seer with grow older and pass on and I will be left with nothing? Is that what you mean by in time?"

The man sighed, seeming to know Angel. "Nothing I say is going to change a damn thing in your eyes…"

"You're damn right about that." Angel said, turned quickly and making his way back up the stairs to his room.

When Angel was out of sight, the mystery man sighed, shaking his face and for the first time since the Powers That Be had sent him on this final mission he showed his true features. A face Angel would have remembered and listened to in a heartbeat, but a face the Powers would not let the vampire see. There were rules for the mystery man, in order to help Angel he had to do it without having the influence a former seer would have had on their champion. Angel had to be ready and willing to accept the truth from a complete stranger, not an old friend.

The mystery man looked up at the ceiling, his Irish brogue still thick. "You don't give Angel some clues soon we are going to lose him."

He then looked back down at his hands. Doyle never expected any answers from the Powers, but he still would talk to them every once and awhile. It made him feel important. He sighed once more, looking back in the direction Angel had gone and wishing he could just tell his friend the truth. Angel deserved that much, Cordelia deserved that much. When all of this was over, Doyle was going to have a few words with those Powers That Be that had sent him on this mission.


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 16**

Cordelia sat in bed, her TV turned down low. It was a little after noon and Connor had crashed after running around all morning, his little figure curled up on the bed next to Cordelia, taking his much needed nap. She, on the other hand, could not sleep, her thoughts constantly drifting back to Angel. She wondered where he was, if he was okay, and if Buffy had found him. She hoped Buffy hadn't. She was worried what Buffy would do if she got to Angel before anyone else did. Cordelia was sure she would lose Angel forever if Buffy got to him before he knew the entire truth of the situation.

Cordelia looked down at the child next to him, watching him take deep breathes as he slept. He looked like an angel, actually he looked like Angel. The bigger he got the more Angel's features in his son became apparent.

Cordelia looked away, rubbing her hands over her huge, almost eight and a half month pregnant stomach. She wondered if the new baby would look like Angel.

Suddenly the TV turned off, startling Cordelia, but then a book of baby names came floating toward her and she realized it was only Dennis. The ghost had been trying to get the seer to pick out baby names for the past week, but she had been avoiding it. She had thought that Fred would help her pick out a name, since Angel was not around to, but Cordelia had still not been back to the hotel, so asking Fred for help was out.

"Not now, Dennis." Cordelia groaned. She didn't want to pick out a baby name by herself because that just confirmed it for her. She was alone, with a baby on the way that she would have to be everything for. She alone was in charge of that baby, she alone would name it.

The book, however, fell onto the bed next to Cordelia with a thump, causing Connor to stir.

"Thanks, Dennis." Cordelia rolled her eyes at her ghost.

"Ma?" Connor rubbed his eyes, sitting up,

"Yeah, baby?" Cordelia ran her hand through Connor's short blonde hair.

Connor just smiled, moving closer to Cordelia, and leaning his head against her swollen breast.

"Want to help me pick out a name for the baby?" Cordelia asked.

Connor nodded, tiredly. He still clearly was sleepy.

"Okay." Cordelia didn't mind if Connor really couldn't put his own input in, she just liked the feeling of having help. She flipped the book open to the boy's names, since she knew she was having a boy and thumbed through them. "Okay, how about Andrew?"

Connor shook his head, yawning.

"We don't like that one?" Cordelia smiled. "Okay, how about…Derek."

"Noooo." Connor giggled, waking up a little more.

Cordelia laughed too at Connor's disapproval. "What about Ryan?"

"Nope!" Connor jumped up, ready to play again. He began bouncing on the bed.

"Connor, sit down." Cordelia told him, putting a hand on her stomach as the mattress moved with each jump Connor took. She could feel a wave of nausea hitting her as the bed moved.

Connor didn't listen; instead he giggled and jumped harder.

"Connor…" Cordelia warned.

"Mommmmmmy." Connor smiled back, still jumping.

Cordelia could feel it in her stomach; she was going to be sick if he kept it up. "Connor Angel, sit down right now!"

Connor seemed stunned that Cordelia had yelled at him. He stopped bouncing, standing on the bed in shock for a second.

"Just sit down and listen to me for a second!" Cordelia continued to yell, her emotions from everything that had happened and was happening coming to a boil. She had no idea why she was taking it all out on Connor, but she was, and she couldn't help it. "There is no jumping! You just listen to me for once, do you understand me? When I tell you something you listen!"

Connor just had a blank look on his face as Cordelia continued to yell.

"I am so sick of you not listening to me! You just…" Cordelia stopped yelling as she felt something in her stomach. She grasped her stomach, leaning over, a baffled look on her face.

"Ma?" Connor seemed to almost whisper.

Cordelia looked up, smiling gently at Connor. "The baby kicked."

"Kick?" Connor seemed confused.

"Come here." Cordelia took Connor's little hand and put it where the baby had kicked. A second later it kicked again and Connor felt it.

Connor's eyes grew wide and he smiled at Cordelia. "Kick!"

Cordelia smiled, pulling Connor up close to her and letting a few tears slip out of the corner of her eye. "Mommy is sorry for yelling at you." She hugged him and gave him a kiss on the head. "I didn't mean it, I am just so tired."

"It's kay, Ma." Connor leaned forward, putting his hands over her cheeks and wiping up Cordelia's tears.

Connor's action only made Cordelia more emotional because it was so genuine, it reminded her so much of Angel. She pulled Connor closer and just held him the best she could with her stomach, allowing all thoughts of Angel possibly alone with Buffy somewhere behind her. At least she had Connor and the new baby. Angel would always be a part of her life no matter what.

Angel and Buffy made their way out of a local pub, both wiping blood from the corner of their mouths. They had gotten to the pub just in time to stop the group of demons from frying all of the people inside to the bone, but not before getting pummeled themselves.

"You okay?" Angel asked, noticing Buffy was bleeding from the corner of her eyebrow.

Buffy nodded with a sigh. "Yeah. Nothing I can't handle."

Angel nodded, he knew how strong Buffy was so that answer was more than enough for him.

They walked in silence for a few blocks and then Buffy turned to Angel, catching him deep in thought. She was concerned, hoping he wasn't thinking about Cordelia. Buffy was just starting to get him back, she thought, and she was not about to let that all be thrown away.

"Are you okay?" Buffy repeated Angel's question from earlier. "You have been quiet."

"I'm always quiet." Angel rationalized.

"Well, extra quiet…" Buffy restated.

Angel shrugged, wiping up the last of the blood from his split lip before plunging his hands into his pockets. "Just thinking…"

"About?" Buffy pried, hoping Angel did not say Cordelia's name.

Angel looked at Buffy and the ahead of him, taking an unneeded breath. "Maybe you should go back to California."

"What?" Buffy was shocked. That was not the answer she had been expecting. She could have dealt with him bringing up Cordelia, but this she was not ready for.

"I just…" Angel started. "I don't know if this is the mission for you. I mean, this is my burden. You have so much good you could be doing back there."

"The Scoobies are taking care of it. Trust me, if they needed me they would call." Buffy lied, knowing none of them had a clue where she was. They couldn't reach her if they wanted to.

"It just doesn't seem right." Angel said. "I don't even know if this is my mission anymore. Maybe I don't even have one…maybe I'm just wasting my time."

"Angel, why would you say that?" Buffy asked. "Remember your Shanshu?"

"No one wants to reward me." Angel said. "They took my son from me, the Powers don't care anymore."

"Well, I care." Buffy said.

Angel thought for a moment and then spoke. "I…there is this guy. He tells me where to go to help people. He works for the Powers, I think…"

"See?" Buffy smiled. "So the Powers That Be do care about you."

"He says you're not the answer I'm looking for." Angel told her.

Buffy raised an eyebrow, whoever Angel was talking about she no longer liked.

"So, maybe he is right." Angel continued. "Maybe you should go."

"Angel…" Buffy stopped walking, grabbing his arm. "Do you even know the question you are asking? If you are so lost, how can I not be the answer? You don't even have a question."

After a moment, Angel smiled at her. She was right. He had no question, so he didn't need an answer. "Maybe…"

"Maybe this guy isn't someone you can trust." Buffy offered. "I wouldn't take anything he says to heart. You don't sound like you know him well."

"I don't." Angel said quickly, and then added after a few seconds. "But it feels like I do. I feel like I know him so well."

"Maybe you just need a friend." Buffy offered.

Angel nodded, maybe she was right. He had no idea she was lying through her teeth to him or that he actually did know the mystery man who was actually Doyle. If he had known it was Doyle he would have taken his advice in a second, but he didn't; all he knew was Buffy wanted to be there for him. Why shouldn't he let her?

Lilah sat in her office, bored out of her mind. The Senior Partner's had put the Angel project on the back burner since Buffy had managed to spring the souled-vampire from them in Ireland. They felt there were much more immediate concerns and alliances to be made. They knew it was only a matter of time before they got Angelus so they were not rushing things.

All of this, however, meant that Lilah did not have much to do any longer. Angel was her soul project, her obsession, her mission. Slowly he had crept into every pour, memory, thought, she had. Almost in the same way the vampire had begun to drive Lindsey wild in the past.

Suddenly the door to Lilah's office opened and Gavin strolled in.

"Out." Lilah said simply.

"Well then…I guess you don't want an update on the seer." Gavin teased, turning back to the door.

"Wait." Lilah stood. "What about Cordelia?"

"Did you forget her little condition? That bundle of Angel she is carrying around with her?" Gavin referred to Cordelia's pregnancy.

"What about the baby?" Lilah raised an eyebrow.

"Another month and that child will be born. It's the opportunity we have been waiting for. We can lure Angel in with it." Gavin said.

"Except for the fact that Angel doesn't know Cordelia is carrying his child." Lilah snorted, folding her arms over her chest.

"And you really think that would stop him from saving the woman he loves?" Gavin smirked, turning and making his way out the door to leave Lilah with her thoughts.

Lilah stood there for a moment, contemplating Gavin's words and realizing the other lawyer was right. Regardless of the fact that Angel did not know Cordelia was having his child he would still help the seer. She had and would always mean a lot to Angel, even Lilah knew that. Now all the lawyer needed was a plan.

Wesley moved around in his office, digging through the piles of phone books and leads they had on Angel. Every once and awhile, Lorne would come back with information from a contact and they would start their mad search for Angel again, only to never quite finish it. Wesley, however, could not find it in his heart to throw away any of their leads. He figured they might come in use eventually.

"Wesley?" Fred entered his office. "Did you find that file?"

Wesley sighed. He had left one of the case files on his desk a week ago and now it was buried. "Not yet."

"Try and hurry. Gunn can only keep them on the phone so long." Fred spoke of their clint that the file belonged to. "They think we lost their file."

"We did." Wesley admitted, taking a deep breath before adding. "Just tell Gunn to tell them to call somewhere else."

"Wes…" Fred pleaded. They could use the money from this client right now. With Angel out of town, and the world of demons and vampires starting to know it, the number of cases Angel Inc. had started to decline slowly.

"I know." Wesley knew what Fred was thinking. "But I can't find it."

Fred nodded and exited to tell Gunn the news. A few minutes later Wesley emerged from his office to find Gunn cleaning up the weapon's cabinet and Fred and Lorne both going through their remaining case files at the counter. Since Cordelia had stopped coming to work, the organization of all the paper work at Angel Investigations had gone to hell.

"Another case we dropped." Gunn said, without turning to look at Wesley. "We keep that up, we ain't gonna be able to pay the rent."

"I know." Wesley sighed, fixing his glasses. "But there isn't much else we can do right now."

"We can find Angel." Gunn said dryly, still not looking at Wesley.

"We are working on it, sweet cake." Lorne said.

"Maybe we should call Cordelia." Fred suggested. "See if she had any visions. It would give us something to do."

"Cordelia will call us when she is ready." Wesley said.

"You keep saying that." Gunn turned to Wesley. "But she hasn't called yet and she has maybe a month left before she pops."

"You know how stubborn she is." Wesley told Gunn. "She doesn't even pick up the phone, its useless calling her."

"So maybe we should go over there." Gunn said. He had been worrying about Cordelia since Angel had left. He felt it was his responsibility to look over Connor and Cordelia, and he was getting more irritable the more and more they avoided the subject of getting back on Cordelia's good side.

"She will only slam the door in our face." Wesley said, knowing exactly how the pregnant seer would act.

"I'm just…" Gunn took a deep breath, trying to sort out his words. "I'm worried. What if she goes into labor and none of us are there?"

"Dennis will call us." Wesley said, and then added. "Cordelia will break before then."

"You think?" Gunn asked.

Wesley nodded, although he was not exactly positive of it. He just wanted to keep the rest of the Fang Gang from panicking. He honestly didn't know what Cordelia would do when she had the baby. He wasn't even sure if she wanted any of them in her life anymore. He had contemplated her walking away over a month ago her way of taking the easy way out. Maybe being around them all reminded her too much of Angel. Wesley hoped that wasn't the case but he couldn't be too sure, not with Cordelia, she always did what you least expected.

Doyle was sick of playing mind games with Angel. When he had originally signed up for the gig of being Angel's "mystery man" he thought he was going to be able to help the souled-vampire but now he realized he was only hurting Angel more and more.

That's why Doyle had gone to the Powers. He needed to talk to them and try and fix the mess it seemed he was dragging Angel further into or he had to tell them he was done. This job wasn't for him anymore.

Doyle made his way through the blue and white, seemingly endless, abyss. If someone had not known where they were going on this higher plan, they might wander forever, but Doyle knew better. He took about twenty more steps forward and found himself under a huge archway. He walked through the archway and into a white room with a black chair in the center of it. Doyle sat down.

"Seer…" The voice of the First Power bellowed. "What have you come for?"

"Why are you here?" The voice of the Second Power roared.

"He fears for the vampire." The voice of the Third Power added.

"Your damn right, I do." Doyle's brogue was thick, always getting worse when he was annoyed. "What ye doing to him, its not right."

"He speaks of right and wrong." The Second Power mocked.

"Does he know right and wrong?" The First Power asked, rhetorically.

"Hey! I am standing right here!" Doyle interjected. "And yeah, I know right from wrong. What you're doin' to Angel is wrong. You lied to him, took him from his son, from Cordelia!"

"There are reasons…" The Third Power's voice began.

"I know the reasons!" Doyle snapped to the voices bellowing throughout the room, the owners of them unseen to him. "Because he needs to learn sufferin' before he can keep true happiness. I get that taking him from his son and from Cordelia is teachin' him true pain, but isn't it enough already?"

"You do not understand." The First Power said.

"It's not to teach him suffering only." The Second Voice added.

"The vampire's children are threatened when he is around." The Third Voice explained.

"If the seer had the child with him with her the child would die." The First Power said.

"Things would be after the child." The Second's voice added.

"Creature would chase the vampire's offspring." The Third Power said.

"Wait…what?" Doyle was confused. Originally the Powers had told him Angel needed to learn the true meaning of loss and suffering and then they would grant him his soul in its full, they would allow him to experience happiness with Cordelia and not have to worry about Angelus, that was why they had allowed Wolfram and Hart's fake prophecy to go as far as it did, but now it seemed the Powers had other reasons to keep Angel away from Cordelia and Connor as well.

"The child within the seer, the one who is not born yet." The First Power started.

"It is unknown to most of the demon world." The Third Power continued.

"Angel would bring threats to the child." The Second Power went on.

"Threats of all kinds. The child would be killed." The Third Power added.

"Connor would be killed." The Second Power said.

"Cordelia would be killed." The First Power finished.

Doyle allowed everything to sink it. It seemed the Powers were planning on giving Angel happiness with Cordelia, but for that he had to suffer the ultimate heart-break, losing Cordelia and Connor. But Now Doyle also understood the Powers were protecting the child Cordelia was carrying. It made sense. If evil knew she was having Angel's child, evil would come after her. "How long before Angel can return?"

"Once the child is born." The Second Power said.

"Not bad…" Doyle thought. He knew Cordelia had about another month before she had the child.

"And Angel had suffered." The First Power added.

"What?" Doyle was flabbergasted. "Angel has suffered."

"Not enough." The Third Power said.

"He has not given into it." The First Power explained.

"He is denying it." The Third Power said.

"He is living with it." The Second Power added.

Now Doyle was enraged. "What the hell is he supposed to do with it? Crawl up and shut the world out? That would drive the man mad!"

"He has not suffered." The First Power said. "Not enough."

"He is sorry for his past. He is redeeming himself." The Second Power started.

"But he has been given too much. Too many people care, too many are willing to die for him." The Third Power said.

"He must lose it all to gain it all." The First Power concluded.

"So he has to feel like he doesn't matter to get what he deserves?" Doyle was appalled.

"He does not deserve to be loved, yet we allow his seer to care." The First Power said, anger in its voice.

"He does not deserve the happiness of a child, yet we have given him two." The Second Power also seemed mad.

"He does not deserve complete happiness, yet we will give it to him very soon." The Third Power stated.

"All the Champion needs to do is feel alone. He needs to feel no one cares to feel the ultimate pain. Then he will be given his reward." The First Power concluded.

It hit Doyle like a pound of bricks. Angel would never get to go back to Cordelia, because he felt like he was still important to someone, that someone still cared about him. "Buffy…" Doyle whispered to himself as the white abyss swirled around him, letting him know the Powers had dismissed him.

When Doyle was thrust back into reality, he found himself behind the desk of the hotel Angel was staying at. He realized that Buffy was giving Angel too much support, too much care, too much love. Angel couldn't feel the pity and pain and lose he needed to in order to get back to Los Angeles with Buffy hanging on him giving him hope for a future. Buffy needed to go if Angel was going to get his complete soul, his children, and his Cordelia.

Angel stood on the roof of the hotel he now called home in Dublin. He was watching over the city, taking a break from everything, taking a break from Buffy. She had stepped into the shower and Angel knew it was his time to catch his breath, so to speak anyway since he didn't actually breathe.

Angel dug his hands into his pockets, something on the sidewalk catching his eye. It was a young couple pushing a baby carriage. The image made his tae a ragged unneeded breath. It reminded him so much of Connor and Cordelia. He had always wanted to take Cordelia and Connor out for a stroll in Los Angeles just like this couple was doing, but the time had never been right. Now he would never have the chance.

Angel's mind filled with thoughts of both his son and his seer. He knew Connor had to be walking and talking by now, and he knew Cordelia would be having her child soon. Angel was almost sad he wouldn't be there for Cordelia when she had the baby. He knew, or thought rather, that the rest of the gang would be there, but still, Angel had always felt it was his duty to watch out for Cordelia, even if he was no longer the champion of Los Angeles. Angel had no idea how wrong he was about that, he had no idea the Fang Gang had not talked to Cordelia in months or that Cordelia was about to give birth to his next child. He did not know he was going to be a father again, or that Connor was going to be a big brother.

Angel continued to think about Cordelia's child, not knowing it was half his, wondering if it was a boy or girl. He could see Cordelia raising a boy because he watched how good she was with Connor, but he wondered if she really wanted a girl. He assumed she would, someone to take shopping, but then again he wasn't sure. You could never be certain with Cordelia. He laughed at his own thought. That was what he loved about her, you could never read her, she was always changing.

Angel's thoughts drifted away from his seer, the woman he loved, the woman he had left back in Los Angeles to raise his son; they drifted away from Cordelia and onto the Slayer who was inside his hotel room, finishing up a shower. It wasn't that Angel didn't like having Buffy around. He did. She gave him support but that was all. She was a friend, and that's all he wanted her to be, but he knew her and he knew she wanted more from him.

Angel sighed. It was only a matter of time before he had to express these feelings to Buffy. He had to tell her he loved Cordelia, he always would, and that he couldn't be with the Slayer, not the way Buffy wanted him to be.

Angel took one last look out at Dublin before turning back and jumping down to his own balcony. Buffy would be out of the shower soon and he knew if he was not in the room when she stepped out she would immediately be worried. He was not in the mood for that tonight.

Cordelia sat in her bed, her head propped up by a few pillows. It was rather late already, she noted seeing that the clock was already readying two-thirty in the morning, but she just couldn't get comfortable, and therefore couldn't fall asleep.

She felt huge, and swollen, and one minute she would be sweating, throwing her sheets off while the next minute she was freezing, struggling to pull them back up around her and her hugely pregnant belly. But most of all, Cordelia felt alone.

Not alone in the sense that no one was around her. She knew she had Connor, and Dennis, and the child inside of her, but she still felt cut off from people who she cared about. She knew she had done that to herself though, by storming out the Hyperion, not turning around and not answering any of the Fang Gang's calls. She had been the one to cause the distance between her and them, but Angel was another story entirely.

Cordelia did not cause Angel to walk out on her, on his son, on their unborn child. Wolfram and Hart had caused that with their fake prophecy, and not Cordelia was paying for it.

Suddenly, Cordelia felt the child inside of her begin to moving. She rubbed her swollen stomach, trying to calm the child but it continued to move around and kick.

"Hey…" Cordelia whispered to her unborn baby. "Calm down in there, Mommy can't take you kicking her, plus there isn't a lot of room for you to move around in there…" She cracked a smile, not her infamous one, but a smile none the less. She knew she was far bigger then a normal eight month pregnant woman.

After a few more kicks the baby seized its actions.

"Thanks…" Cordelia gave her stomach another rub, allowing her mind to drift off to the baby inside of her.

She wondered, assuming the doctor had been right, if her son would get Angel's devouring eyes. Eyes she had always melted in. She hoped he would. She hoped the baby boy inside of her would grow to be big and strong like his father as well. She hoped he would get the heart of gold Angel possessed too.

She realized, after a moment, that she wanted this child to be a mini-replica of Angel. She frowned at her own thoughts. That wasn't fair to this baby.

Cordelia's thoughts drifted toward Connor. She wondered if she was doing a good job raising him, if Angel would be proud. She hoped that she would be a good mother to both of these children.

"Guess I'll find out…" Cordelia mumbled to herself, looking at her enormous belly. She couldn't believe all that had happened to her in the four years since she had left Sunnydale. Barely Twenty-two, and she was already part demon, the mother of two, and had lost the one man she knew she couldn't live without.

Memories of Sunnydale caused Cordelia to remember someone else; Buffy. The name alone made Cordelia shiver, pulling her blankets up over her stomach and too her chin. She knew that Buffy had probably found Angel by now and that she was more than likely doing all in her Power to keep Angel from Los Angeles.

"Maybe I deserve it…" Cordelia said to no one in particular. She had caused Buffy so much misery and pain back in High School that maybe this was the Slayer's way of getting back at the seer. Cordelia knew she had changed so much since high school but she also knew Buffy had no reason to believe that.

Cordelia sighed, sinking into her pillows, her thoughts drifting back to Angel as she closed her eyes. One day, she prayed, he would come back and save her like he had so many time before. One day he would know he had two children, and a family, and a woman who loved him back in L.A. She just hoped that day was sooner than later.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 17**

Cordelia waddled around the small kitchen of her apartment, cleaning up after the breakfast mess Connor had left behind. The toddler was in the other room, and she could hear him giggling as he watched a T.V. show Dennis had put on for him.

Cordelia took her time cleaning the table, her huge belly in her way for the most part. She was ready to have the baby any day now, her due date within the next forty-eight hours. She was nervous, but kept trying to keep herself busy so she wouldn't have to think about it.

She still wasn't talking to anyone at the hotel, so she hoped when she did go into labor she would have enough time to get herself to the hospital.

"Ma?" Connor made his way into the kitchen.

"Yeah, baby?" Cordelia called over to him, wiping the last of the crumbs from the table.

"Come…" Connor stuck his hand out, grasping his fingers into a fist. He wanted her to come sit with him and watch TV.

"In a minute, babe. Just let Mommy clean…" Cordelia's voice faded as she lurched forward, a pain in her stomach. After a moment it passed and she rubbed the spot on her huge stomach where she had felt the ache.

"Ma?" Connor seemed to be able to tell something was wrong.

"I'm fine, baby." Cordelia smiled, rubbing the pain out of her stomach. She wasn't sure what is was, but she felt so tender everywhere she figured she could have just moved wrong and caused the pain. "Just let me finish up in here and I'll come watch TV with you."

Connor nodded, shuffling out of the room after a minute more of watching to mark sure Cordelia was okay. Even as a toddler, Cordelia could tell he was Angel's son. He had that look on his face, like he knew something was bothering Cordelia but he was not about to pry into it. Angel used to get that same look around her, she recalled, as she went back to cleaning up the kitchen.

Angel ran some gel through his wet hair. He had just gotten out of the shower after a long night of patrolling the streets of Dublin with Buffy at his side and wanted to do nothing more than sleep, but Buffy had insisted that they went out for breakfast to celebrate his birthday which had just passed. Angel felt bad objecting to the slayer, so he agreed, but the truth was, he had always hated celebrating his birthday. He had never seen any point in celebrating it since he was immortal, but over the past few years Cordelia had forced him to celebrate it and he was slowly starting to look forward to it, but now Cordelia was gone, and in a way, Angel felt like he was betraying his seer by celebrating with the Slayer.

Angel finished spiking up the sides of his hair when he heard a knock on his door. "Yeah?"

"You ready?" Buffy's voice echoed through the door.

"One second." Angel said, grabbing his black sweater and throwing it over his head, fixing the v-neck cut so it laid right on his broad chest. He then opened the door to find Buffy in a pair of jeans and a black tank-top that cut off just above her flat stomach.

Angel had to look away, the shirt Buffy wearing only reminding him of Cordelia. She had one similar to it and he had loved her in it, but he had not seen her wear it since Harmony had showed up at the hotel two years ago.

"What?" Buffy asked, noticing Angel's disturbed look.

"Nothing." Angel broke away from his thoughts. "Let's go eat."

Buffy nodded, leading Angel out of their hotel room and down the street from the hotel to a small café on the corner. They entered and were quickly seating in the corner so the sun, when it did rise, would not hit Angel and turn him into a pile of ash.

Angel sat across from Buffy, awkwardly running his hands over his napkins. His thoughts continued to drift back to Cordelia and Connor. He knew Connor was walking and talking now, and he knew Cordelia was about to have her baby any day now. He wished he could be there for her since Groo had walked out on her. Little did he know he wasn't missing the birth of only Cordelia's child, but his child as well.

"Angel?" Buffy waved her hand in front of him. "Are you okay?"

"What?" Angel shook his thoughts, focusing back on Buffy. "Sorry, what did you say?"

"I asked if you were okay." Buffy repeated herself.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Angel lied. He wasn't fine, he was far from it. He missed his son and his seer. "Why?"

"You seem distant." Buffy ran her hand over his.

Angel pulled his hand back, however. "I'm just thinking." He leaned back, stretching his arms.

Buffy pretended not to notice his pull from her. "About what?"

"Cordelia." Angel said frankly. "And Connor."

"Oh…" Buffy did not know what else to say to that, so she looked down at her menu instead.

"Sorry." Angel knew he was making her uncomfortable but he didn't care. "She…they…they are both on my mind a lot. All the time…I can't help it."

"No…no…" Buffy tried her best to plaster on a fake smile, but Angel noticed she was not half as good as Cordelia was with that. "Let's just order and eat."

Angel nodded, glad he would not have to talk through their breakfast because he did not want to. He just wanted to eat and go back to the hotel and sleep, because in his dreams was the only time he got to see Cordelia and Connor, and they were all he wanted to see anymore. They were all that mattered to him.

Fred shuffled some papers around on the counter of the Hyperion Hotel as Wesley and Gunn sat on the floor of the lobby, sharpening the stakes from the weapons cabinet. Everyone was on edge, all for the same reason, but no one would talk about it. No one wanted to be the first to admit they were beyond worried at the fact that Cordelia's due date was rapidly approaching and they had still not heard one single word from her since she had walked about over three months ago.

The front door to the lobby swung open, disturbing everyone's thoughts as the three members of Angel Inc. looked up to find Lorne strolling into the lobby, a tray of coffee in his hand.

"Good morning all." Lorne greeted with a smile as he placed the tray on the counter next to Fred. "How is everyone?"

"Good." Fred said all too anxiously as she grabbed her coffee from the tray.

"So we are all worried then." Lorne glanced around the room to see the shocked looks his co-workers were giving him. He felt the need to explain. "I got the vibes the second I walked in here. You're all practically screaming it, and I get it. I am worried about our Princess Cordelia too."

"She is due any day now." Gunn sighed. "And we still haven't heard from her."

"I know." Lorne nodded.

"Maybe it's time to suck it up, and stop waiting for her to come to us? Maybe we should go over there?" Fred looked over to Wesley.

"That's what I have been saying all along." Gunn said. "We waited too long. Who knows if she is even living there anymore?"

"She is." Wesley said simply. "I have been keeping tabs on her from afar, just in case…" He admitted.

"Well, thanks for letting us know." Gunn said sarcastically. He had been worrying about Cordelia since she had walked out and he was a little pissed off to know that Wesley had had peace of mind the whole time, knowing she was at least safe and in the city.

"I didn't want to tell you guys. We didn't need information to leak out and Wolfram and Hart find out Cordelia was no longer under our immediate protection." Wesley explained.

Gunn went to say something, but Fred cut him off.

"It doesn't matter." Fred said. "What matters is what we do now. I think it's time we go over there, just to check on her at least. This is her first baby, I don't think she should have to be alone. Not now when she is so close to her due date."

"I agree." Gunn said instantly.

"Me too." Lorne agreed.

All eyes were on Wesley and after a moment the Ex-Watcher spoke. "Alright. We will go check on her."

Gunn smiled, giving a slight nod before going back to work on the stakes. He was satisified, glad that they were finally going to go check in on Cordelia and Connor and make sure they were both safe. He had hated knowing that Cordelia was all alone with Connor and the baby inside of her. He knew that Angel wanted his son and seer safe, and Gunn had felt it was his job to do that, and had been frustrated with Wesley's method of dealing with Cordelia walking out for months. Now, Gunn was relieved to know they were finally going to check in on Cordelia ad Connor.

Cordelia eased herself onto her couch in her living room, still feeling a little funny. She rubbed small circles on her enormous belly trying her best to ignore the little spurts of pain she would get every ten to fifteen minutes. She knew her mind kept saying she was having contractions but she was doing her best to deny it. She was not ready to be in labor, not ready to have her and Angel's child without Angel there.

Connor climbed up on the couch next to Cordelia, smiling up at her and kissing her cheek. "Mama!" Connor giggled before bouncing on the seat next to Cordelia. "You 'kay?"

Cordelia looked down at Connor, astonished the child could tell something was bothering her. "Yeah, baby." She ran her hand over his short blonde hair, pulling it through her fingers so it stuck up straight like Angel's did. "I'm fine."

Connor didn't appear to buy it, and seemed to almost raise an eyebrow at the woman he know called his mother. "Baby 'kay?"

Cordelia tried her best to smile at Connor. "Yeah the baby is…" Suddenly a spurt of pain roared across Cordelia's abdomen, causing her to lose her breath for a moment, squeezing her eyes tight.

"Ma?" Connor stood on the coach, placing his little hands on Cordelia's shoulder.

Once the pain had passed Cordelia smiled up at Connor, trying her best to stay calm. "I'm fine, sweetie, it's just that Mommy thinks the baby is ready to be here soon."

"It coming?" Connor clapped his hands together. He had been waiting for the baby to get here for a long time now, not really understanding the whole concept, just knowing that Cordelia kept saying he was going to be a big brother. He didn't know what that meant, but he was smart for an eighteen-month-old, and he knew it was something special.

"Yeah, sweetie. The baby's on its way." Cordelia tired her best to smile but inside she was beyond scared. That was it; she had in fact admitted she thought she was in labor. There was no going back now, no denying it. She was going to have Angel's child and he wasn't going to be there, in fact, she didn't know if anyone she considered her family would be there.

Angel and Buffy had finished breakfast, and were entering back into the hotel. They both did not have much to say to each other, especially not after how Angel had earlier admitted to having Cordelia and Connor on his mind.

As the pair moved toward the stairs the bellboy Angel remembered from months ago opened the door to the stairwell and practically ran into Buffy.

"Excuse me." Buffy mumbled, sliding past the bellboy.

"Mr. Angel!" The bellboy, who was really Doyle, grinned at Angel. "Can I speak with ye for a second or two?"

Angel was caught off guard, and was not really in the mood to have the Powers play with his head, not today. "I…uh…"

"It'll only take a second from ye, sir." The bellboy pleaded. "Just need to check somethin' on your room."

Angel looked at Buffy who shrugged.

"I'm going to go take a shower." Buffy said, not waiting to see if Angel stayed to talk to the bellboy or not. She needed a break; the breakfast with her ex had been more then awkward for the Slayer.

Angel dug his hands in his pocket, looking at the bellboy, not having a clue that it was actually Doyle standing in from of him. "Make it fast."

"How have you been, Champ?" Doyle stated casually, feeling comfortable knowing that Angel had no idea it was him.

"Is there a purpose for this conversation?" Angel seemed grumpy. "Because I am really not in the mood for this today."

"Grouchy?" Doyle asked.

Angel said nothing, just glaring at the bellboy, not knowing that a few years ago the man in front of him had been his seer and his best friend.

"Okay, okay…" Doyle put his hands up in defense. "Just wanted to check in, see how you were."

"Fine." Angel grunted. "Are we done?" He turned toward the stairs, not really waiting for an answer.

"Alright, I'll cut to the chase…latterly." Doyle grabbed Angel's arm. "A specific Chase actually…"

Angel turned, immediately knowing what the unrecognizable man holding his arm meant. "Cordelia?"

Doyle backtracked. He knew Cordelia had gone into labor, but he also knew he shouldn't tell Angel that, so he lied. "Just wanted to get your attention."

Angel raised an eyebrow. "Is she okay?"

"Fine, she is fine." Doyle said. It was easier to lie to Angel when the vampire did not recognize him. "I need to talk to you about the Slayer…"

"Leave Buffy out of this…" Angel stated quickly, although he didn't know why he was defending the Slayer.

"She isn't meant to be here." Doyle pressed. If Angel was going to get back to Los Angeles anytime soon he needed to accept the fact that he could not have help, he needed to suffer, he needed to be lonely, he needed to hurt, and he needed to do it alone.

"You think I don't know that?" Angel snapped. "I can't…she won't leave. I tried."

"Try harder." Doyle continued.

"Why? So I can be alone? So I can be miserable?" Angel threw his hands out. "The Powers have taken everything from me. My son, my life, my business, my friends, Cordelia…why do I have to keep losing when I am trying to help them win?"

"Look, things will work out for ye…but this is not how they have to be." Doyle said. "Ye want your life back? Trust me, listen to me, get rid of the Slayer."

Angel took a step toward Doyle, his jaw clenched. "I have no reason to trust you. Now leave me the hell alone." And with that Angel turned, slamming the door to the stairwell in Doyle's face.

The bellboy that was Doyle immediately transformed back into Doyle's true human form. Angel would easily recognize his friend now, but Angel was nowhere to be seen. Doyle sighed, running his hand through his hair. He knew Angel, and he knew that the vampire wasn't lying; he did not trust Doyle or the Powers, and he was not going to push Buffy away anytime soon.

Lilah sat at her desk over a thick file with one name written in red ink right across the top of it. The file red ANGEL, and Lilah had been contemplating opening it for the past hour or so. To open it meant she was committed to the project, she was ready to help take Angel out for good and bring Angelus forth. Up until that point she had always gone along with the idea of helping the Senior Partners bring back Angelus, but now that the time had truly come, she wasn't sure if she was ready. She had heard the horrors of Angelus and did not know if she or the world, for that matter, was ready for Angelus.

Still, the file sat on Lilah's desk for one reason, the Senior Partner's trusted her with this project. Lilah sighed, knowing she needed to open the file. It held everything on both Angel and Angelus as well as Angel Inc., Angel's seers, and Angel's son. Somewhere in that file was the code to crack Angel and bring Angelus forth for good. Lilah just needed to find the right buttons to press to get the vampire to lose his soul forever.

"Well…" Lilah ran a hand over the file. "Perfect happiness it out." She spoke to herself, knowing that Angel would never allow himself to willingly become Angelus again, so bliss would never enter the picture, but how then would she get Angelus?

Finally, Lilah opened the file to the second page of the huge stack of papers, and there, clipped to the corner of the page was a black and white photo, and that photo was the answer for Lilah.

The page was all about Cordelia Chase, and the picture in the corner was of Cordelia and Angel, holding Connor, sitting outside of the Hyperion Hotel. Lilah studied it for a second. It was easy to see, even in this picture, Angel cared deeply for the seer as well as his son

"This is it." Lilah decided. Cordelia and Connor were the bait they would use to get Angelus. If they could capture Cordelia and Connor they could force Angel into making a deal to give up his soul. It could be as simple as that, and as far as Lilah was concerned it would be. She shut the file; she needed nothing more from it. Now all she needed was a plan to capture Cordelia and Connor.

Cordelia clenched her jaw, holding her stomach as she prepared herself for another contraction. The pain was coming more frequent now, and the seer was not sure what to do anymore. Connor had climbed up on the couch next to her; obviously concerned for the woman he called his mother.

"Ma?" Connor tried to rub Cordelia's shoulder.

When the pain passed, Cordelia felt Connor's little hand on her arm and burst into tears. She could not bear any of it anymore, the physical pain, the emotional distress, the worrying over Connor and the new baby. It was all too much for her to do alone, and now she was apparently about to give birth alone too. She had waited too long, and now there was no way to get in contact with anyone to help her.

"Momma, no cryin'." Connor tried to wipe up Cordelia's tears with his little hand.

"Mommy needs to cry a little, sweetie." Cordelia felt the sweat pouring off her head, wondering how on earth she was really going to push a baby out of her. This didn't seem right, she felt like she was having a bad dream and would wake up eventually, but when the next contraction hit, Cordelia realized it was not a dream at all.

Suddenly, a phone came flying toward Cordelia, landing next to her. She knew it was Dennis who had dropped the phone, and knew what he wanted her to do. She pushed the phone away. "I am not calling them, Dennis." She said tiredly, trying to catch her breath.

Dennis seemed to pick back up the phone as if she had convinced him to stop trying to get her to call the hotel when suddenly, Cordelia saw the numbers being pounded on the phone.

"Dennis!" She warned, trying her best to take deep breaths between contractions. "Do not…"

"Angel Investigations…" Fred's voice rang on the other end of the phone.

Cordelia froze, trying her best to remain silent until either Fred or Dennis hung up the phone.

"Hello?" Fred's voice echoed through the phone.

Cordelia continued to keep quiet until a strong contraction hit her, and then she couldn't help it. "Oh God!" She screamed.

"Cordelia?" Fred's voice seemed to panic through the phone. "Cordelia? Is that you?"

The contraction passed and Cordelia panted. She knew she needed help whether she wanted to admit it or not. "Yes…Fred, it's me."

"Cordelia? What's wrong?" Fred asked quickly.

"The baby…I'm having the baby." Cordelia said through a clenched jaw as she felt Connor rubbing her arm. He was a smart toddler.

"Where are you? At home?" Fred asked quickly.

"Yeah…" Cordelia could feel another contraction coming on.

"Okay, relax, we are on our way." Fred told the pregnant seer.

"Hurry…" Cordelia got out before the contraction hit and she screamed out in pain.

"We are…stay calm, Cordy. We are on our way." Fred hung up the phone.

Cordelia tried her best to do exactly what Fred said, and stay calm, but a million things were racing through her mind as she could feels Angel's child trying its best to make its way out into the world. She didn't know if she was ready for this, she wasn't sure if she could be a single mother to two children of a vampire. She didn't know if she could do it without Angel, but she realized, as she sat there sweating and in pain, that she really did not have a choice anymore.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 18**

Cordelia tried to keep herself comfortable on the couch as she waited for the arrival of the Fang Gang. Dennis had moved the bag she had packed for the hospital to the front door so someone could grab it on the way out, and Connor, clearly able to tell Cordelia was in pain, sat next to her on the couch, quiet and still, his hand over Cordelia's that had fallen to her side.

Another contraction hit and Cordelia grunted in pain, holding her breath until it passed.

"Good, Ma." Connor smiled up at her.

Cordelia forced a smile, grateful that Connor was there to keep her calm even though he wasn't even two year old and could really do little to help. Still, he was a piece of Angel and she liked having that around, especially now. "Thanks, sweetie."

"Baby hurt you?" Connor accused, scrunching his eyes together in the same way that Angel had been famous for.

"No, this is what the baby is supposed to do." Cordelia explained through panted breaths. "It's okay…"

Before Connor could respond there was a pound on the door.

"Cordelia?" Gunn's voice roared from the other side of the door.

"Come in!" Cordelia was relieved that the rest of Angel Inc. had finally made it. "It's open!"

A second later Gunn came busting through the door followed by Wesley, Fred, and Lorne. Gunn and Wesley quickly moved to Cordelia's side while Fred gathered up Connor and Lorne grabbed Cordelia's bag that Dennis had put by the door.

"How you feeling, girl?" Gunn asked, smiling from the kneeling position he had taken in front of the pregnant seer.

"Like I'm having a baby…" Cordelia tried her best to accompany a smile with her hint of sarcasm.

"Let's get her out of here." Fred said, moving Connor to one hip.

"Okay…" Wesley nodded to Fred and then looked at Cordelia. "Cordelia, can you stand?"

Cordelia raised an eyebrow and went to respond to Wesley but was cut off by another contraction, causing her to double over in pain. When it passed she glared up at Wesley. "Get me to a damn hospital."

Wesley nodded feverishly. "Yes, yes of course. Gunn?" He looked toward the man across from him for an idea.

"I…uh…" Gunn was panicking almost as much as Wesley. He just knew they needed to get Cordelia to a hospital and fast.

Finally, Lorne broke in. "Crap, boys! Give her support on each side, and help her down to the car."

Gunn looked at Wesley who nodded back. "Sounds like a plan."

"Thank you!" Cordelia rolled her eyes.

Gunn and Wesley then moved, helping Cordelia stand and walk out the door while Lorne and Fred, with Connor in her arms followed them out to the car.

"Put her in the front." Fred told Gunn and Wesley.

"Yeah, yeah." Gunn said fumbling for the door to his pickup truck.

Just then another contraction hit Cordelia and she grunted in pain, digging her nails into Wesley and Gunn's shoulders. "Damn it!" she cried.

"Damn right!" Gunn said, sure that Cordelia had pierced his skin.

When the contraction had passed, Wesley and Gunn managed to get Cordelia up into the passenger seat before the rest of the crew shoved themselves into the car. Gunn then turned on the engine and sped off in the direction of the nearest hospital.

Angel sat up in the bed Buffy had insisted they shared in the small room of the inn. Originally they had taken turns in the small bed, but now Buffy had decided that since they were calling that room home for awhile, they should both get a comfortable nights rest.

Angel sat still for a second, feeling the need to catch his unneeded breath. He did not know why but when he panicked he began to breathe like he needed the air. Something had jerked him from his sleep, something didn't feel right, and he knew in his heart that something was happening to Cordelia. He just was not sure if it was a good something or a bad something, he just knew he felt alarmed for her.

Angel's sudden thrust from sleep must have disturbed Buffy because slowly she sat up next to him.

"Angel?" Buffy rubbed her eyes tiredly. "What's wrong?"

Angel glanced at Buffy and then back out into the dark room ahead of him. He couldn't tell Buffy what was going on in his head because truthfully he did not know. He just knew something big was happening to Cordelia back in Los Angeles, but he did not know how he knew that. He assumed it was because over the past few years she had become such a big part of his life. He knew her, he cared about her, he loved her, only it seemed like it had all happened too late for him to tell her any of it. Now she was thousands of miles away raising his only son for him.

"Angel?" Buffy said, less tired now.

"Nothing." Angel barely whispered. He did not want to open up to Buffy, not about this. "Nothing. Sorry I woke you up."

"It's fine." Buffy said, although he did not hide the annoyance in her voice. She hated being woken up. She sighed as she flopped back down on the pillow.

Angel, on the other hand, could not sleep, so he slipped out of the bed and moved toward the balcony of the room, quietly slipping out into the cold air of the early morning. The sun would not be rising for another hour or so, and he embarrassed the loud noises of the city, always busy no matter what the hour. He needed to clear his mind, and yet still as he sat there, his thoughts did not leave Cordelia. He wished he knew what was going on back in Los Angeles.

Lilah sighed, rubbing her eyes as she took a seat on the couch in her office, picking her feet up and stretching out. She had been trying to track Cordelia Chase all day and so far had been pretty unsuccessful. She realized now, just how little the firm had heard about Cordelia since Angel had left.

The seer had not been up to much, not on Wolfram and Hart's records anyway. She had not even been to the hotel, which they had been watching for quite a few months now.

"So strange…" Lilah muttered to herself.

Suddenly the door to her office swung open and Gavin made his way in, handing her a thick file.

"What is this?" Lilah asked, taking the file from her mildly annoying co-worker.

"The Senior Partner's thought it might help with your search for Miss Chase." Gavin said, seeming almost pleasant. "Since you're struggling to find one simple seer."

"Had to add that last part." Lilah gave Gavin a tip-lipped smile. "You can't just congratulate me for coming up with a good plan."

"I just think I could have done a better job." Gavin said.

"Cordelia Chase has not been to that hotel in months. In fact, she hasn't really been seen in months." Lilah stood. "We know she was pregnant and was taking care of Angel's kid, but that's it. So as far as we know she could have run away with the father of her damn baby and taking Angel's squirming brat with her."

"The Groosalugg fathered the child, correct?" Gavin asked.

Lilah nodded, neither her nor Gavin knowing Angel was actually the father of the child. "He is part demon, from another dimension."

"So maybe he took her with him back home. Maybe she isn't even here anymore and that's why we can't find her." Gavin offered.

Lilah thought about Gavin's words for a minute, sad to admit they made sense. Maybe Cordelia had left the dimension. After all, with Angel gone there really was no need for her to stick around. Her job as seer had ended.

"Maybe…" Lilah sighed. "It makes sense."

"Thank you." Gavin seemed satisfied.

"I guess that means we start looking in other dimensions." Lilah made her way to her desk.

"Oh no." Gavin seemed to laugh. "That means you are going to look in other dimensions. This is not my assignment. You got the job, you do it yourself."

Lilah glared but nodded. "Fine. I can handle it."

Gavin nodded, making his way to the door. "I bet you can." And with that he exited.

Lilah then took the file Gavin had given her, sitting at her desk and flipping it open, realizing it was all about Pylea and the Groosalugg. She sighed, knowing she would be sitting at her desk for quite some time.

Gunn pulled the car into the hospital parking lot, driving up one of the lanes of the parking lot with Cordelia and Fred in the front seat with him. Fred was timing Cordelia's contractions, and helping her with her breathing while Wesley and Lorne both sat in the backseat, silent, the only movement from either of them was Wesley, who was bouncing Connor in his arms.

Fred looked up as Gunn drove. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for a parking spot!" Gunn was in a panic as if he was the expectant father.

"Emergency entrance!" Cordelia barked, a contraction hitting her hard.

"Oh, right…right!" Gunn jerked the wheel, causing Cordelia to gasp, grabbing onto her swollen stomach. "Sorry!" Gunn apologized, pulling his truck up to the emergency entrance.

Fred immediately took charge of the situation. "Wesley, get a wheel chair! Gunn take Connor! Lorne take the car once we get Cordy out of here. You can't come in anyway."

"Good idea." Lorne nodded.

Wesley climbed out of the truck, handing Connor to Gunn and rushing to get a wheelchair. He returned a minute later. "Here, Cordy, let's get you in."

Cordelia nodded, slowly climbing out of the truck with Fred's help. She managed to make it into the wheelchair before another contraction hit. "Oh God…" She braced herself, her nails digging into the armrests of the wheelchair.

Wesley pushed Cordelia into the hospital rapidly as Gunn carried Connor in and Fred ran alongside. Once they made it into the hospital, Gunn began to panic again.

"We need a doctor!" Gunn yelled.

Immediately two nurses were at their side, one blonde, and one older woman with white hair.

"What's the problem?" The blonde nurse asked.

"She is in labor!" Gunn seemed to almost want to smack the woman. Couldn't she see what was wrong with Cordelia?

"We see that dear." The older nurse smiled gently at Cordelia. "When did the contractions begin sweetie?"

"About four hours ago." Cordelia told the nurse.

"Did your water break?" The older nurse asked.

"Stop asking her questions and help her!" Gunn was still panicking.

"Relax sir, your wife will be fine." The older nurse had mistaken Gunn for the father of Cordelia's child.

"Oh no…I am not…" Gunn immediately backed off. He was not about to step anywhere near to Angel's place in the matter, even if Angel was nowhere near them.

"Well, whoever you are, you can help me with the paperwork." The blonde took Gunn, leading him toward the desk area.

"Here, give me Connor." Fred took Connor from Gunn before the nurse led him away.

"Okay, sweetie…did your water…" The older nurse started again, but was cut off as Cordelia grunted loudly, almost doubling over as another contraction hit.

"Her water didn't break yet." Fred answered for Cordelia.

"Okay, we'll let's get her in a room." The nurse took over the wheelchair from Wesley, leaning down to talk to Cordelia. "Who is coming into the room with you, honey?"

Cordelia's eyes looked at the floor, Angel should be with her, Angel was who she wanted. It stung her to know there was no way he would be there to see his child be born. Hell, he didn't even know she was about to bring his child into the world.

"Uh…Fred, go." Wesley said. "I'll take Connor and wait for Gunn."

Fred nodded, handing Connor off to Wesley and making her way down the hall with the older nurse and Cordelia.

Wesley stood with Connor in his arms, watching Fred and the nurse make their way down the hall with Cordelia. Suddenly, Wesley felt a tug at his shirt collar. He looked down to see Connor, who had been silent the whole car ride, looking up at him.

"My ma 'kay?" Connor seemed to ask.

Wesley was amazed at how much Connor's speech had improved since Cordelia had walked out of the hotel with him a few months ago.

"She 'kay?" Connor asked again, tugging hard at Wesley's collar to get a response. Clearly, he was worried about Cordelia.

"Yes…yes she is fine." Wesley told Connor, still gazing at the child in his arms. Connor had changed so much since he had seen him last. He had grown; his blonde hair coming in thicker now, and his face had changed a little. His expressions reminded Wesley so much of Angel that the ex-watcher had to turn away from the child. They all missed Angel.

Doyle could not keep quiet much longer as he sat, disguised, at the front desk of the small inn that Angel and Buffy now called home in Dublin. He wanted to just march upstairs, find Angel, and tell the vampire with a soul that Cordelia loved him and was about to give birth to his child back in Los Angeles. He hated having to lie to Angel and lead the vampire on to think that he was a threat to the people he cared most about, when in all actuality, Angel had never been a threat to Cordelia or Connor.

Doyle sighed, running a hand through his hair, although it was not really his hair, but rather the hair of the bellboy he was disguised as. He stood, thinking the only way he would keep his sanity was to talk to Angel. As he moved around the corner, something stopped him; something deep in his gut, it just didn't feel right.

"Fine…" Doyle looked up, closing his eyes. He knew where he had to go to get a bit of sanity. When he opened his eyes, he found himself on a higher plan. He needed to talk to the Powers That Be.

Immediately, voices pounded all around Doyle.

"He is back…" The voice of the First Power bellowed.

"He needs answers…" The voice of the Second Power added.

"He will not like them." The Third Power finished.

"Why can't Angel know about his child?" Doyle asked. "He should know. He is the father."

"The champion must still learn pain…" The Second Power said.

"He is in pain, trust me. That slayer drives me crazy and I barely see her…" Doyle tried to joke.

"The slayer must go, the champion must suffer, he must learn sacrifice and loneliness, only then can he know of his child." The Third Power said flatly.

"Fine…fine…" Doyle knew he was going to get nowhere with his argument. "But tell me this. Is Cordelia okay?"

"The seer is fine." The First Power said.

"We are watching over her." The Third Power told Doyle.

"And the child." The Second Power added.

"They are both safe? Everything will be okay with the birth?" Doyle was worried about Cordelia. He had always cared for her, regardless of the fact that she was now in love with Angel. Cordelia would always hold a special place in Doyle's heart, just as he knew he held one in hers.

"They are safe." The Second Power assured Doyle.

"We will allow no harm to come to them." The Third Power added.

"And now you must go, we are growing impatient with this constant attention you bring to the Champion." The First Power said.

Doyle was appalled at this command. "Hell no! I have more questions and I am not going anywhere 'til they get answered." He folded his arms and stood his ground. He had to get more information from the Powers That Be whether they wanted to give it to him or not.

Angel was already showered and dressed by the time Buffy woke up. She found him sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, glancing out at the sun-covered streets of the city below while the curtains of the room protected him from contact with the sunlight.

"Well, nice to see your up already." Buffy stretched out in bed, smiling. "Did you ever get back to sleep?"

Angel did not make eye contact with her; instead his voice was muffled by the hand that covered his mouth as his chin sat in his palm. "No."

"What?" Buffy had heard him but did not like that he was not giving her the attention she felt she deserved.

This time Angel looked at her, seeming a little bothered by her. "No." He said plain and simple.

"Okay, Mr. Grouchy Pants." Buffy rolled her eyes, getting out of bed.

Angel did not respond to Buffy's comment, instead he focused his eyes back on the street. His thoughts were deep, all drifting back to Cordelia. He wondered what was going on in Los Angeles with her that was causing him to get such an intense feeling in his gut. He had thought of many scenarios, but if he had done his math right, one in particular kept coming to the forefront of his mind. Maybe Cordelia was having her baby. It made sense, the timing was right, and he assumed something like that, something of such great importance to Cordelia would somehow impact him, even if he was half way around the world.

"What is wrong with you this morning?" Buffy's voice broke Angel's train of thought. "You seem touchy."

"A lot of my mind." Angel told her, still looking down at the streets below.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Buffy made her way over to Angel, gently putting a hand on his shoulder.

"No." Angel shrugged her hand away, he wanted her to leave him alone. He needed some time to think.

"Fine." Buffy seemed fed up with Angel's attitude. "You want to sit here and brood, go ahead, but I am sick of watching it day in and day out. It's all you do. You fight evil at night, and sit around and cry about Cordelia during the day."

Angel's eyes flicked up to the Slayer as she said his seer's name. "Leave Cordy out of this."

"Angel, please." Buffy rolled her eyes. "It's done between you two. Whatever you and her had, or you thought you had, you will never see her again."

Angel was angered by Buffy's words, even if they did make sense. He quickly stood, getting in the Slayer's face. "I will see my son and Cordelia again, do you understand? That's all I want, and if you can't support that then maybe you should just go."

Buffy narrowed her eyes at Angel. "Is that what you want? Because if it is, just say it. Save me the agony of having to sit here and watch you slowly lose your mind." She was angry now. "I am the best thing that has happened to you since you got here, and don't you forget it." She turned, acting as if she was going to leave.

Angel sighed, running a hand through his hair. He was not about to let Buffy just walk out. She was all he had, and he was not ready to give it all up yet. "Wait, Buffy…stop."

Buffy smiled to herself, she knew Angel would not let her walk away from him. She turned back to him, trying to still seem annoyed. "Yes?"

"I…don't go. I can't do this without someone beside me. I can't be alone." Angel admitted, looking down at the floor. He knew what the Powers want him to do; they wanted him to get rid of Buffy, but he just wasn't ready to be alone yet.

Buffy sighed. "Fine. But you need to open up to me a little. This isn't good for either of us."

Angel nodded. "I'll try my best."

Buffy seemed satisfied with that answer because she then moved to the bathroom, closing the door. A minute later Angel heard the water from the shower running and he slowly took his seat back by the window, allowing his thoughts drift back to Cordelia and his son in the silence of the small hotel room.

Doyle stood in the white abyss, tapping his foot against the ground he could not distinguish from the walls. He wondered how long the Powers would let him stand in rant there. He was surprised they had let him stay this long. He could have sworn they would have sent him back to earth by now.

"What more do you ask?" The First Power spoke after what seemed like ages.

"Don't torture Angel." Doyle pleaded. "Let 'em go back. Let the man be with his family."

"We've already discussed this." The Third Power said.

"So many times before." The Second Power added.

"He must let go…" The First Power started.

"I know…I know." Doyle cut the power off. "He's gotta let the Slayer go. Thing is, he won't. He's used to having someone 'round. You've let him have people to depend on so long he forgets fightin' the good fight alone."

"Well then things shall remain as they are." The Third Power said.

"Until the Slayer leaves." The First Power said.

"Until the vampire knows true loneliness." The Second Power added.

"He shall remain heart broken. He shall remain in the dark." The First Power said.

"He needs to let go to get his reward." The Third Power ended.

"Fine…fine." Doyle could tell he was running out of time. The Powers were growing impatient. "I'll work on it, but maybe something can help. If he knows one little thing…"

"You may tell the vampire that the seer has given birth when she does, but he may not know it is to his offspring." The First Power seemed to know exactly what Doyle was about to ask.

That was not the answer Doyle had wanted, but he would take it. It was better then nothing. "Thank you."

"Now go." The Second Power commanded, and before Doyle knew it he was sitting back at the front desk of the small inn in Dublin. He now had one tool he could use. If Angel knew that Cordelia had given birth to her child, he would want to go back even if he didn't know it was his child because Doyle knew Angel loved Cordelia, and Doyle knew Angel wanted to protect Cordelia unconditionally. With this small bit of information, Doyle was certain he could get Angel to make Buffy leave.

Lilah smiled, leaning back in her chair. It had not taken more than three hours to track the Groosalugg, he was not a hard demon to find. Now that she knew where he was, she knew all she had to do was follow him and she was certain she would find Cordelia and Connor along side of him. Even though all of her information and contacts had only given her information on the Groosalugg, never a woman and child with him, Lilah was now more certain than ever that Cordelia had left the dimension with the Groosalugg once Angel had left Los Angeles; it was just a feeling to deep in her gut to shake. She knew the Groosalugg was the key to something she needed to crack this case.

A knock on the door stirred Lilah from her thoughts. Her head shot up. "Come in."

Gavin stepped into the office. "You paged me?"

Lilah's lips curled into a devilish smile. "I'm giving you one chance to help in this. I found the Groosalugg. Now you can come with me and help me drag Cordelia and Connor back here, or you can sit back and let me take all the credit. You're call."

"Why would you not want all the credit?" Gavin raised an eyebrow. He knew Lilah too well.

"It might not be so easy getting Cordelia and Connor back here. I figured two of us was better than one." Lilah answered, and then added. "Plus, this was kind of your idea as well."

After a moment Gavin nodded his head. "Okay. Where is this Groosalugg?"

"Back in Pylea." Lilah stood, making her way toward Gavin. "So start packing. We have another dimension to get to."


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 19**

Cordelia tried her best to get comfortable in the hospital bed she now found herself in. The nurse, along with Fred had taken her into the maternity ward and had a doctor named Dr. Smalls come in to check on her. Dr. Smalls informed her that she was doing well, but not exactly ready to have the baby yet and since it was her first child it could take awhile longer. He then had given her some medication to ease the pain of the contractions on the seers body.

"How are you feeling?" Fred asked, sitting down in the chair positioned next to Cordelia's bed.

Cordelia snorted at Fred's question, looking away toward the window. "Scared out of my mind."

Fred was caught off guard for a moment. She had not expected that response. "Cordy…"

Cordelia turned back to Fred, small tears threatening to escape her eyes. "Angel should be here. You know?" She looked down at her stomach, feeling another contraction pass. She closed her eyes, allowing the pain that was now less intense to leave her body. When it passed, she looked down at her belly again, running her hands over her large hump of a stomach.

"We are going to get him back, Cordelia." Fred tried to reassure her friend, taking one of Cordelia's hands in her own.

Cordelia smiled sadly, her voice almost dropping to a whisper. "I'm so afraid to do this without him."

"Angel wouldn't be able to help you give birth much." Fred tried to lighten the mood with a joke. "That's pretty much our job as women."

"I mean everything." Cordelia sighed. "I mean being a mom, and taking care of this baby and Connor and…I'm just not ready to do this alone. And what if he does come back and doesn't want any of this?" She tried to fight her tears back.

"Cordy, we all know Angel better than that. He would be here in a heartbeat if he knew, and he loves you. He really does, I saw it, we all did. He would never leave you." Fred told the emotional seer.

"He already did…" Cordelia mumbled.

Before Fred could respond the door to Cordelia's hospital room swung open and Gunn, who was holding Connor, entered with Wesley and Lorne in tow.

"Nurse said you were situated and that we could come in for a little." Gunn explained why they had arrived.

"How did you get Lorne in here?" Fred was curious so say the least. After all, green demons were not a common sight in hospitals.

"Snuck in a side door, bolted here." Lorne smiled. "I'll leave before the doc comes in; don't need to freak anyone out." He moved toward Cordelia, squeezing her leg a little and smiling at her. "Just wanted to see how the princess was doing."

"Been better." Cordelia tried her best to smile.

"Ma?" Connor questioned, reaching out his arms to Cordelia, and trying to squirm out of Gunn's grasp.

"Hold on there." Gunn laughed at Connor's strength. "Mommy can't hold you right now."

"Maaaaaaaa." Connor sounded annoyed at Gunn's response and continued to grab for Cordelia.

"Here, give me him." Cordelia reached out for Connor. "I can take him for a minute."

"Cordelia…are you sure?" Wesley questioned.

"I'm fine, Wes." Cordelia said tiredly, knowing another contraction was hitting her and glad she was numb to it from medication. "I'm half demon."

Wesley nodded and watched Gunn hand Connor to Cordelia.

"Ma, you 'kay?" Connor asked, immediately hugging Cordelia around the neck as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Yes, I'm fine, baby." Cordelia ran a hand through Connor's blonde hair. "The baby is just coming soon."

"It hurt you." Connor accused his unborn sibling. "It bad baby."

Cordelia had to smile at this. "No, the baby isn't bad sweetie. This is just the only way for it to get here." She tried her best to explain it to Connor.

Connor looked around at Wesley, Fred, Lorne, and Gunn as if to ask them for confirmation on the information Cordelia was giving him. He was definitely sharp as a nail.

"Mommy's right, Connor." Wesley nodded at Angel's son. It did not feel weird for him to call Cordelia Connor's mom at all, and that surprised the ex-watcher, but then again, he had always assumed Cordelia would take the mother role to Connor regardless of if Angel was around or not.

"Lobe you, Ma." Connor said, kissing Cordelia's cheek and then turning, reaching for Fred to get him off the bed. He seemed to know Cordelia needed it all to herself.

Connor's words brought Cordelia to tears. "Love you too, baby."

Fred could see having Connor and everyone in the room was making Cordelia far more emotional than necessary. She handed Connor to Gunn. "Maybe you guys should go take a walk, let Cordelia be for a little."

"Good idea." Wesley nodded in agreement. "Gunn and I will take Connor. Lorne should probably stay in here."

"Unless you want to hear a lot of people screaming." Lorne joked, pointing to his green skin.

"True." Fred smiled gently at Lorne, glad to have the company in the room with herself and Cordelia.

Cordelia, knowing she needed the rest, agreed silently, even though she wanted Connor close to her right now. She had gotten so used to having only the child around that she felt like a part of her was missing every time she was away from him. She sighed, closing her eyes and leaning back into the pillow as she heard the door to her hospital room close.

Lilah and Gavin made their way down the one dirt road that ran through the center of Pylea. It was hot and buggy out, and the two lawyers were not dressed properly in their suits to be out in that kind of weather.

"Do we even know where the hell we are going?" Gavin swatted a bug out of his face. "Or are we just walking until we die of dehydration."

"We are going to the castle." Lilah said, not hiding the fact that she was as miserable as Gavin was on this adventure.

"Castle? Why?" Gavin asked.

"Because…" Lilah stopped walking and turned to face Gavin who was a step or two behind her. "The Groosalugg is the king here…or something."

"I thought he got dethroned?" Gavin said, beginning to walk again so Lilah joined him.

"He did for a little. Now, sources claim he is back in power." Lilah told him.

Gavin nodded, looking ahead up the road, and noticing now that he did see a castle in the near distance. "Is that it?" He pointed.

Lilah looked at the castle in the distance and nodded, wiping the beads of sweat from her eyebrow. "That's it."

"It's like three miles away!" Gavin complained. "I am not ready to do that kind of walking."

"Well, get ready." Lilah told him, putting a little step in her stride. "Because that is where we need to go."

Gavin sighed, but could see he was getting nowhere with Lilah. She was determined to get to that castle and that meant he had to follow her. He had to admit, he was curious to hear what the Groosalugg had to say, or to find Cordelia. Even if he hadn't been curious, he had no choice, he was in another dimension now and Lilah was the only face he knew. He grumbled to himself but continued to follow Lilah up the road.

Angel felt like he was going to suffocate, which was weird considering he didn't actually breathe. Something was eating at him, deep down, he could feel it. His connection to Cordelia and Connor ran deep and his gut was telling him something big was happening in Los Angeles. Finally, he stood, raising himself out of the chair in the corner of the room. He moved silently to the door.

"Where are you going?" Buffy asked from her spot on the bed. She was reading a magazine.

"I…uh…" Angel decided he wouldn't lie to her. She always had a way of catching him anyway. "I'm going to make a phone call. Downstairs." He had thrown his cellphone out when he had left L.A. since he had felt it would only be a temptation to call Cordelia.

"Who are you calling?" Buffy was being nosy.

"Uh…L.A." Angel finally said. "The hotel."

"What?" Buffy sprung up. "No, you can't."

"Cordy…I mean Buffy…" Angel stammered, seeing the rage in the Slayer's eyes as he called her by the nickname he had given Cordelia, instead of calling her by her real name. "I have to call. Something is wrong, I can feel it."

"You can't call." Buffy was going to let the name mix-up slide, knowing it was much more important that Angel did not make that phone call. If he did, and found out the truth, that he was not a threat to Connor and Cordelia, she was sure she would lose him.

"Something is wrong." Angel said again.

"Fine." Buffy tried to calm him down. "I'll call. You can't. You know it's a bad idea. You need to let all that go, it will only hurt you more."

"They are my family. I don't want to let them go." Angel told her, his eyes narrowing at her.

"I don't mean forget them." Buffy tried to correct herself. "I just mean, you can't help them, not anymore. I'll call them. You go get some air."

Before Angel could respond, Buffy helped him out the door. Once he was out of the room, she sighed, running a hand through her hair. She was not about to call the hotel. No way in hell, if she did she would give up where she and Angel were, and she was not going to lose him. She would rather have him miserable then know that Cordelia had beaten her to taking Angel's heart. She would just lie to Angel when he came back up, she decided. She would tell him everything was fine at the hotel. Honestly, she didn't care if it was or it wasn't.

Cordelia winced, feeling a contraction hit her, although the medicine was working wonders now, she could hardly feel anything below her waist anymore, not that she was sure that was a good thing. Once the contraction had passed, Cordelia sighed loudly in frustration. She was tired, sweaty, and still in some pain, and what was worse was that she was doing it alone. Most woman in her situation had someone there to help her, someone who had helped them get into the situation, but Cordelia did not. Her baby's father was not going to see the birth of his child, no one even knew where Angel was.

"Something wrong, cupcake?" Lorne asked, raising his eyes from the magazine he was reading.

"Just ready to get on with this." Cordelia said, taking a deep breath as she felt another contraction. "Even with the medicine, this pain is not anything great."

Fred smiled, her eyes out the door. "Well, you're in luck. Looks like the doctor is on their way now."

"Let me get out of the way." Lorne said, slipping a hat on and shuffling out the door only a few seconds before the doctor shuffled in.

Dr. Smalls entered. He was a shorter man, about the same height as Cordelia, and he looked like he had just gotten out of medical school. His hair was black, cut in a crew cut, but his eyes a brilliant green. He was definitely the type of man Cordelia would have found attractive in the past, but now no one compared to Angel.

"Just wanted to see how things were going." Dr. Smalls grinned at Cordelia.

"I just want this to be over with." Cordelia sighed, feeling another contraction. The pain was coming on a little stronger now. "I think the medicine is wearing off."

"Let's have a look." Dr. Smalls positioned himself at the bottom of Cordelia's bed. Once he was finished examining her he shook his head. "Still not ready to go here yet." He stood.

"What?" Cordelia had already been in the hospital for five hours, she couldn't believe she was still not ready to have the baby. She had been sure at her apartment she was going to give birth right then and there when Wesley, Lorne, Gunn, and Fred had shown up.

"Relax, this is normal." Dr. Smalls told her. "Your pain is a little stronger now because you're getting closer and closer to having this baby."

"How much longer?" Fred asked the question Cordelia also wanted the answer to.

"She is seven centimeter's dilated, so not too much I'd say. As long as she keeps going the way she is." He smiled at Cordelia and then moved to the door. "I'll be back to check on you later."

Once the doctor had left, Cordelia flopped her head back onto her pillow, her sweaty hands making small fists out of frustration. "I don't think I can do this." She finally said.

"Cordy, you'll be fine." Fred told the seer.

"I don't know…" Cordelia looked out toward the window, her thoughts drifting to Angel. She wondered where he was right now and what he was thinking. All she wanted was for him to be safe, she hoped that much was true at least. Then another contraction hit her, the pain stronger and she cursed Angel and the ballet for getting her into the situation she was in right now. She was not ready to push something the size of a watermelon through something the size of an orange; she wasn't even sure if her body could handle that, despite what all the baby books she had read had said on the subject.

Angel opened the door from the stairs to the main lobby, seeing Doyle still disguised as the bellboy. He did not want to talk to the bellboy, did not think he had anything to tell him. However, if Angel had known the bellboy's true identity he would have taken Doyle's words to heart immediately.

Doyle saw Angel come down the stairs and was not about to let the vampire slide by unnoticed.

"Where you goin'?" Doyle, disguised as the bellboy asked.

"Outside." Angel did not break stride.

"Doubt that, mate." Doyle stood. "It's still sunny out." He pointed to the window to prove to Angel that the sun was indeed still out.

Angel sighed, he did not want to talk to the bellboy, but now he knew he had no choice. He was trapped.

"Where were you headin'?" Doyle asked, moving around the front desk and leaning against it, his arms folded.

"Just needed to think, needed some air." Angel said quickly.

Doyle knew Angel better than that. "Somethin' botherin' you?"

"None of your business. None of the Powers business." Angel turned back toward the stairs. "You can tell them I said that!"

"I will, but uh…I think they won't be keepin' you up to date with Cordelia if I tell them that." Doyle said, knowing the name Cordelia would be enough to make Angel stop dead in his tracks.

And Angel did stop, turning back to Doyle. "What about Cordelia?"

"You can sense it right?" Doyle asked. "In your head, in your heart, in your gut. Somethin' is happenin' back in L.A.?"

Angel nodded. He had felt it all day. "What is it? Is she okay?"

"Yeah, sure." Doyle nodded. "I mean, as okay as a woman in labor can be."

"She's in labor?" Angel's face went a shade paler if that was possible. He moved closer to Doyle. "Is everything okay? The baby?"

"Relax there." Doyle said, wanting nothing more than to reveal his true identity to Angel, tell Angel he was not a threat to anyone in L.A., and then tell Angel that Cordelia was having the vampire's child. He knew he couldn't do that, however. "She is doin' okay. She hasn't had the baby yet, but the Powers assured me she will be fine."

"How can she be? She is alone. Groo left her, and now she…" Angel thought of all the pain Cordelia was in. He had seen women in labor over his lifetime and it had never been pretty. "She's alone."

"She's got her family back there. You remember them? They were your family too." Doyle said. "And if you get your crap together and listen to me maybe you can get back to them some day."

"You've given me no reason to trust you." Angel told him.

"I gave you this. I told you 'bout Cordelia. You know I'm not lyin' bout that." Doyle tried to argue.

Angel turned to the stairs. "I'm not making Buffy leave."

"You need to." Doyle pressed.

"I can't." Angel told him. "I need her."

"No you don't. You need your son and you need the woman you love. We both know that's not the Slayer anymore." Doyle said.

Angel sighed. "If I lose her, I lose all I have left of humanity. The Powers…they don't want me to be with my family, and Buffy has been nothing but honest with me."

"Yeah…" Doyle nodded, knowing he wasn't going to get through to Angel tonight. "Yeah, okay."

"If anything else with Cordelia comes up, let me know, okay?" Angel asked.

"Yeah, sure." Doyle nodded.

"And thanks…" Angel started, but realized only now he had never gotten the bellboy's name. "I'm sorry…your name?"

Doyle panicked, thinking for a second. "Just call me A.F."

"A. F?" Angel raised an eyebrow. What a weird name.

"My initials." Doyle grinned, hoping Angel would take the hint since he could not come out and directly tell the vampire who he was.

But Angel didn't get the hint. When he heard A.F. Alan Francis was not what he thought of. It wasn't because he had forgotten Doyle, it was just that so much had happened since he had lost Doyle. "Well thanks." Angel turned and climbed the stairs back to his room. He opened the door to see Buffy sitting on the bed.

"Did you call L.A.?" Angel asked, wanting to know what his family had said of Cordelia's condition.

"Yeah." Buffy lied.

"And?" Angel pressed.

"Everything is fine." Buffy smiled. "Just a normal day over there."

"Normal?" Angel raised an eyebrow.

Buffy nodded again. "Yup. They were all just hanging out."

Angel nodded, not saying anything, but instead making his way into the bathroom and closing the door behind him, leaning his weight against it. Buffy had just lied to him, right to his face. She had not called the hotel and he knew it, because he knew not everything in L.A. was fine. Cordelia was in labor, Buffy was a liar, and he was lost. He ran a hand down his face. All he wanted was to be back in Los Angeles with the people he cared about.

Cordelia clenched her fist and dug her chin into her chest as another contraction hit. They were stronger again and she was struggling through them. Lorne was at her side, wiping the sweat droplets from her forehead while Fred held the seers one hand.

"I can't do this anymore." Cordelia said, somewhere between tears and agony. "I just want it to stop."

"You're doing fine, Cordy." Fred tried to coach the exhausted pregnant woman.

"Please…" Cordelia glanced over at Fred. "Just get the doctor in here."

"Cordelia, if you're not ready he can't help you." Fred reminded her.

"JUST GET THE DAMN DOCTOR!" Cordelia barked.

Fred was astonished by Cordelia's tone of voice. It took her a minute to recover, but when she did, she looked over at Lorne. "Lorne, get out."

"What?" Lorne was confused. "What did I do?"

"You're green." Fred reminded him. "So get out so I can get the doctor."

"Get out! Get out!" Cordelia screamed at Lorne.

Lorne nodded, throwing on his sunglasses and hat that he had snuck out in before and he bolted for the door.

"Cordy, I'll be right back." Fred told her.

Before Cordelia could throw a snippy remark out, however, a contraction hit her and she screamed her way through it, clutching her eyes tight, and reminding herself that if she ever did see Angel again, he was a dead man for doing this to her. When the contraction passed and Cordelia opened her eyes she saw Fred and Dr. Smalls standing at her feet.

"So, you think you're ready, Cordelia?" Dr. Smalls asked.

Cordelia nodded, trying to catch her breath. "I think."

"We will see." Dr. Smalls checked Cordelia while Fred moved to the side of Cordelia's bed. "Well…" Dr. Smalls smiled up at Cordelia. "Looks like you were right."

"What?" Cordelia felt the blood drain from her face.

"You're dilated. Its time you start pushing." Dr. Smalls informed her.

"What?" Cordelia was in shock, even though she had yelled about being ready for the past few hours, now that the time had come she wasn't sure if she was. "Now?"

Dr. Smalls chuckled a little. "Yes now." He moved to page a nurse. "Looks like you better either give Daddy a call to get here or let him know he's missing this."

Dr. Small's comment immediately took any shock off Cordelia's face. She looked down at her inlarged stomach and thought of Angel. She couldn't even say anything to Dr. Smalls.

"Dad's not in the picture at the moment." Fred spoke of Angel.

"Oh." Dr. Smalls turned around to face Cordelia. "Sorry…I didn't know."

"It's fine." Cordelia tried to reassure him, but it wasn't fine. It was far from fine. She wasn't sure if she could do this.

Dr. Smalls moved to the bottom of Cordelia's bed just as the nurse walked in. He looked up at Cordelia. "Okay, Cordelia, next contraction I want you to push, then I want you to stop when I tell you too, okay?"

Cordelia nodded, eyes wide. For the first time in her life she was speechless, her mind racing in a million different directions. This was it, she was going to be a mom to a child she had actually created, she wanted to cry and scream and laugh all at the same time. Then the contraction hit, and Cordelia started to bear down with all she had.

Lilah and Gavin had finally made it to the castle that belonged to the Groosalugg. It had taken them a good two hours to get there, and then another twenty minutes convincing the guards to let them in. Once they explained they were the Groosalugg's "friends" from L.A., however, the guard let them in, and led them to the center hall where they found the Groosalugg sitting on a throne, eating an apple. He stopped when he saw them.

"Can I help you?" The Groosalugg asked.

Lilah nodded, stepping forward as Gavin followed. "I am Lilah Morgan, I'm from Los Angeles."

The Groosalugg nodded, pointing to the clothing Lilah and Gavin were wearing. "I can tell by your garments."

"Of course." Lilah fixed her suit jacket.

"Well, how can I help you?" Groo stood.

"We had a few questions for you, actually." Lilah said.

"Yes?" Groo asked.

"Regarding Cordelia Chase…" Gavin spoke up.

A sad look crossed the Groosalugg's face at the mention of Cordelia. "Yes?"

"We'd like to see her." Lilah said. "We assumed she returned here with you to raise Angel's son as well as your child."

"My child?" The Groosalugg raised an eyebrow. "I do not have a child."

"We mean the child Cordelia is pregnant with, or was pregnant with." Gavin said.

The Groosalugg shook his head. "I am sorry, but the princess is not here, and the child she carries is not mine."

"Excuse me?" Lilah raised an eyebrow.

"It is true, I love the princess." Groo sighed, looking down at his hands. "But she did not love me back. Not the way I had hoped for. She loved Angel."

"Angel?" Lilah was surprised, but after a moment it all made sense. Angel and Cordelia were extremely close.

"Yes." Groo nodded, folding his arms, and looking back up at Gavin and Lilah. "When I found out she was with child and it was not mine, I left. I came home. I came here."

"Well…excuse me for asking but, if the child isn't yours then who is the father?" Gavin asked.

"The child is Angel's." Groo furrowed his eyebrow when he saw the look of shock on both Lilah and Gavin's face. "Did you not know?"

"No…no we had no idea." Lilah said, recovering quickly. "But thank you."

"Is that all you need?" Groo asked, not understanding why Lilah and Gavin had made a trip from Los Angeles to ask him that.

"Yes. Thank you." Lilah turned quickly with Gavin following her, not able to believe what she had just heard. It was too good to be true. Cordelia was carrying Angel's baby, and Angel was long gone from Los Angeles, that meant the firm could look at two vampire offspring and no one would be able to stop them from doing it. Now all they had to do was find Cordelia, Connor, and the new child. They were the perfect steal for observation, and even a better bunch of bait if they ever wanted to get Angelus out of Angel. Cordelia, Connor, and now the new child would be the leverage, Lilah was sure of that as she and Gavin made their way down from the Groosalugg's castle and toward the portal that would take them back to Los Angeles.


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 20**

Cordelia braced herself for yet another push when the next contraction hit. Dr. Smalls had assured her she was doing great and it would all be over soon, but Cordelia was not exactly sure if she should believe him or not. She felt like the pain would never be over.

"Alright, Cordelia…" Dr. Smalls coached from the foot of her bed. "And…push!"

Cordelia gritted her teeth, bearing down with all her strength. "God! I can't…do…this!"

"Stop! Stop!" Dr. Smalls commanded.

Cordelia let out a gasp, the pain in her lower body searing. "Damn it!"

"You're doing great, Cordelia." Fred said, smiling down at the seer as she held Cordelia's hand

"Just get it out of me!" Cordelia glared down at Dr. Smalls. "Get that damn baby out of me!"

"One second." Dr. Smalls said. "Okay, next contraction push hard, one good push okay?"

Cordelia nodded, not expecting the next contraction to hit her so quickly. She pushed down, tears of frustration running down her cheeks. "God! I will kill Angel if I see him again!"

Suddenly, a small cry filled the room, and Cordelia realized her child had finally arrived. She looked down at doctor to see what he said.

"It's a boy." Dr. Smalls smiled up at Cordelia as he handed her son to the nurse who cleaned the child up and weighed him. "All seven pounds of him. You did great, Cordelia."

Cordelia smiled, tears of joy rushing from her eyes as the nurse handed her son over to her. The baby looked up at Cordelia, his eyes a brilliant blue and his hair jet black, sticking up just like Angel's.

"Hi baby…" Cordelia whispered to her son who continued to stare up at her. "I am your Mommy."

"He's adorable, Cordelia." Fred told her.

Cordelia nodded in agreement, her eyes never leaving her son. She couldn't help but compare the child in her arms to his father, his chin, his nose, everything on the baby made him look more and more like Angel. "He's beautiful."

The baby gurgled, catching Cordelia off guard but then made himself comfortable, resting against her chest.

"He looks tired." Fred commented.

Cordelia nodded again, still not looking away from her son. "Well, he had a long day today…" She gently stroked his cheek.

"Did you figure out a name for him?" Fred asked.

Cordelia looked up for a minute, staring out the window, and then back down at her son, who was looking up intensely at his mother, as if he was waiting to hear his own name. Finally, Cordelia gave a slight nod, accompanied by a sad smile and a few stray tears. "Yes. His name is Liam. Liam Francis Angel."

Fred smiled at the choice of name Cordelia had given her son. She had named him after his father, well Angel's human form anyway. "I should go tell everyone Liam is here."

Cordelia nodded, but her eyes never left her son's, even as she heard Fred close the door. Once Cordelia was alone with her son she kissed his head softly. "I'm so glad you're finally here, sweetie, and I am so sorry you're father isn't. But he is a good man, and he will be back someday. Until then I am going to try my best to give you all I have." She kissed his forehead again and stroked the child's cheek. "I love you very much, Liam."

Angel emerged from the bathroom to see the sun setting outside his window. He was grateful for that because he could not be around Buffy right now. He was angry at her for lying to him, but also confused. He did not understand why she would hide Cordelia giving birth from him. It's not like he could do anything about it anyway. She should have just told him.

"So, when are we going patrolling?" Buffy asked, not sensing that Angel was angry with her.

"We're not." Angel told her. "I'm going in a few hours, I don't care when you go."

"What's your problem?" Buffy asked, confused by how rude Angel had suddenly become.

"I don't want to talk about it." Angel told her, moving past her to start gathering his stakes.

"Angel…" Buffy placed her hand on his arm.

Angel whipped around quickly to face her. "Leave me alone."

"No." Buffy was not scared of Angel or his brooding. She had known him too long to be anything but annoyed by it. "Why are you being such an ass?"

"Why are you?" Angel asked, then decided he was not about to go into it with Buffy about how he knew she lied. He needed some time to think first. "Look, I need some time alone. I want to go patrolling by myself. Can you handle that?"

"Yeah, sure." Buffy nodded. "When you come back, can we talk?"

Angel nodded. "Sure." He moved to the door and then stopped, turning back to Buffy for a second. "You're easier to live with than Cordelia. She would have never let me walk out of here until she knew what was bothering me."

"Well, Cordelia can be nosy." Buffy was taking what Angel said as a complement.

Angel shook his head. "No. She just cares a lot." And with those words he walked out the door.

Angel's words left Buffy's heart stinging. She could tell, he still thought about Cordelia every second, no matter what she said or what she did, his heart belonged to the ex-cheerleader. It frustrated Buffy beyond belief, and she let out a small scream of annoyance.

Fred hurried out into the hallway of the hospital and toward the waiting room where she found Gunn sitting, holding Connor, and Wesley and Lorne standing off in a corner, clearly trying to hide Lorne's green skin from anyone who walked into the waiting room.

"Guys!" Fred's smile seemed to light the whole room up. "Cordy had the baby!"

"She had it?" Gunn stood, smiling, proud of Cordelia.

"Boy or girl?" Wesley asked, knowing Cordelia was supposed to have a boy, but then also knowing doctors were not always right.

"A little boy." Fred told them. "Liam Francis Angel. He is adorable."

"Can we see him?" Lorne asked.

Fred nodded. "Yeah. Better do it before Cordelia or him fall asleep, they both seemed tired."

"Hear that, Connor?" Gunn looked at the 20-month old in his arms. "You're a big brother!"

"Me?" Connor looked up, smiling. "Baby here?"

"The baby is here." Fred scooped Connor up off Gunn's lap.

"Mommy 'kay?" Connor asked.

"Mommy is okay." Fred told him. "Do you want to see your little brother."

Connor nodded feverishly. "Yes."

"Well, let's go see the baby already!" Lorne was almost as anxious as Connor.

"Before we do, we need to talk for a second." Fred said. "I know Cordelia is worried about all of this, but we can't let her be, she isn't alone and she needs to know that."

"You don't think she already knows that?" Gunn raised an eyebrow.

"I think she is struggling with this. Ultimately, she_ is_ a single parent." Fred reminded them.

"But she's not alone." Lorne said. "We are here for her."

"And we are going to get Angel back for her." Wesley added.

"No false promises to her, Wes." Fred said. "Not right now. We just need to let her know we are here and not going anywhere. She needs to know we are backing her up one hundred percent right now."

"Damn right, girl." Gunn nodded in agreement.

"So that means no talking about pushing her to move back into the hotel, and no talking about Angel. Cordelia needs to deal with those things when she feels the time is right, not when we want her to." Fred said, looking around the room and seeing the other three men nodding.

"Agreed." Wesley seemed to speak for them all.

"Good." Fred smiled at the child in her arms as she led Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne down the hall and toward Cordelia's hospital room, knowing it would be good for Cordelia to see her family and know they were there to support her through all of this.

Lilah sat at her desk with Gavin across from her. They had only gotten back from Pylea a few short hours ago, but already they knew they had to get moving with any plans they might devise with their newly found information from the Groosalugg.

"I am just baffled that she's pregnant with Angel's child and no one knew." Gavin said.

"She hid it well." Lilah said. "Besides, the timing with the Groosalugg and everything, it actually kept her and that child pretty safe."

"Well, we know now." Gavin said.

"And we are going to use it." Lilah said. "All we need to tell Angel is that Cordelia, Connor, and that baby are in trouble, he will do whatever we say."

"He won't give up his soul for them. Then he wouldn't be able to protect them, he isn't stupid." Gavin countered. "Plus we don't have Cordelia or that baby or Connor."

"We don't need them." Lilah decided. "False promises are enough. We tell Angel we have them, he will believe us, because he is nowhere near Los Angeles, and he is afraid to come back here because of the false prophecy. He would just have to take our word for it."

"But would he?" Gavin asked.

"If he thinks there is no other way to protect his family he will." Lilah said. "Trust me, I know how he works."

"If you knew that we would have Angelus by now." Gavin mumbled.

"Shut up, Gavin." Lilah stood, making her way toward the door of her office as she checked her watch, realizing she only had two hours before her meeting with the Senior Partners and wanting to still take a shower before she presented the Senior Partner's with any form of a plan.

Doyle found himself standing in the abyss that he had frequently visited to talk to the Powers. This time, however, he had not gone by his own free will. This time the Powers That Be had summoned him, and Doyle had a feeling that they were mad about something.

"You have disobeyed us." The First Power's voice bellowed.

"You have given the vampire reason to question." The Second Power joined in.

"I have not." Doyle argued.

"You have given clues…" The Third Power said, a little calmer then the first two.

"What are you talkin' about?" Doyle asked, his Irish brogue thicker now that he was starting to get a little nervous. "What clues?"

"Your name." The Second Power said.

"I never gave him my name." Doyle argued.

"Your initials." The First Power told him.

"The vampire is not stupid." The Second Power said.

"He will figure it out." The Third Power added.

"So? What's so wrong with that?" Doyle asked. "Angel will listen to what I have to say if he knows it's me. He doesn't want to hear a damn thing I have to say right now 'cause he doesn't know it's me! We are just wastin' time! You know that as well as I do! He is stubborn, he's got no reason to trust me so he won't! Maybe now he will, and then your champion will be back."

For once, the Powers That Be were silent. After a moment, the Third Power spoke.

"Maybe the guide is right." The Third Power said.

"Damn right I am!" Doyle couldn't believe they had agreed with him.

"No more clues shall be given." The First Power ordered.

"If the vampire figures this out maybe it shall be for the best." The Third Power said.

"If not, we leave it at that." The Second Power added. "The champion needs to pass the test on its own."

"Fine, fine. No more clues." Doyle nodded in agreement.

"Send it away." The First Power ordered.

Before Doyle knew it, he was sitting back down at the front desk of the hotel in Dublin, still in disguise. He sighed; glad the Powers had not been more angry with him. Now all he had to do was hope that Angel was smart enough to decipher the small clue Doyle had given him. If not, Doyle was not sure Angel would ever make it back to Los Angeles and the family he left behind.

Cordelia held Liam close to her as the baby seemed to slowly study his mother's face, as if he was trying to memorize every detail of it. Cordelia in turn studied Liam's face, drawing more and more similarities to Angel and Connor as she looked at him. Liam was definitely going to be good looking, just like his father.

A knock of the door threw Cordelia's concentration off. "Come in." She said quietly.

The next thing the seer knew her hospital room was filled her Gunn, Wesley, Lorne, and Fred who was carrying Connor.

"My nephew is here!" Gunn said proudly, making his way over to Cordelia's bedside.

Cordelia had to laugh at Gunn's enthusiasm. "Liam, that is your crazy Uncle Gunn." She spoke to the child in her arms.

"He is beautiful, sugar." Lorne said, smiling down at Liam. "A chip off the old block, I'd say."

"We are very proud of you, Cordelia." Wesley told her.

"Well thanks." Cordelia smiled at Wesley and then back down at Liam.

"Mommyyy!" Connor put his hands out for Cordelia, struggling to get out of Fred's grasp. "Me see baby."

"Come here, sweetie." Cordelia motioned for Fred to put Connor on the bed next to her.

Fred did so, patting Connor on the head. "Be careful with Mommy and the baby, okay?"

"Kay." Connor nodded, crawling up closer to Cordelia so he could see Liam and his mom.

"Why don't we give you some family time?" Fred asked.

Cordelia nodded, silently thanking Fred as she watched the physicist lead Lorne, Wesley, and Gunn out of the room. She wanted some time with her two boys.

"Baby…" Connor whispered, pointing down at Liam.

Cordelia nodded. "Connor, this is your baby brother, Liam."

"Lam?" Connor tried to say.

"Liam." Cordelia pronounced slowly.

Connor nodded, trying again and this time succeeding. "Liam."

Cordelia nodded, kissing Connor on the head. "Good job." Cordelia tilted Liam up so the baby could see Connor. "And Liam, this is your big brother Connor."

"Hi." Connor waved at the baby.

Liam just gurgled at his brother, but it was enough to make Connor smile proudly, looking up at Cordelia. "He say hi."

Cordelia nodded, tears swelling in her eyes. It had been a long, emotional day for her, and only now was she realizing just how much Liam's birth had changed her life. This was it, she was a mother of two beautiful little boys who might not ever get the chance to know their father. It was too much for her, and Cordelia slowly lost control of her tears.

"Mommy, no cryin'." Connor said, gently rubbing Cordelia's arm.

"I'm sorry, baby." Cordelia kissed Connor on the forehead. "Mommy is just really tired."

"Me too." Connor sighed, leaning his head against Cordelia's pillow, and then pointing to Liam. "Him too."

Cordelia looked down to notice that Liam's eyes were closed and the newborn was on the verge of sleep. She kissed his head softly, and then looked down at Connor who was also half way on his way to sleep. Cordelia sighed, wrapping one arm around Connor as she kept the other on Liam, and pulled both of her boys close to her, allowing them both to take a little nap, and allowing her thoughts to drift to Angel. She missed him, more than she would have ever thought possible. He should have been there with her; he should have seen his sons. Cordelia was worried he would never get the chance.

Angel turned a corner, finding himself on a main street in the heart of Dublin. It had been a slow night, he had only staked three vampires and had been out patrolling for close to four hours, still he did not want to go back to the hotel. He could not face Buffy right now, not after he knew she had lied to him. He still didn't understand why she did it. Would it kill her to show a little sympathy toward Cordelia?

"Probably…" Angel mumbled out loud to himself, still unable to get the words out of his mystery connection to the Powers That Be. His informer, who went by A.F. now, had told Angel to get Buffy out of Dublin, but still Angel would not let her go.

"You shouldn't trust him." Angel sighed, talking to himself of A.F. After all, the informant had not really helped Angel get anywhere except to save a few damsels in distress, still Angel felt like for some reason he had a deeper connection with A.F. He just couldn't figure out what it was.

"Weird name anyway…" Angel continued to talk to himself, knowing no one else could hear him, and if they did they would have thought he was crazy. It was a habit he had developed when he had first regained his soul and had no one to talk to. When he was stressed out now, however, he would talk to himself, just to keep himself sane. "What does A.F. even stand for?"

Angel realized only seconds later what a dumb question that had been. Angel knew who A.F. was, and was ashamed he had not figured it out sooner. So many clues had been left, the way he spoke of Cordelia and called her princess, the way he really cared about what happened to Angel. Angel could have kicked himself for not realizing who his informant and connection to the Powers That Be in Dublin was.

"Damn it, Doyle!" Angel said through clenched teeth as he quickly turned on his heel and headed back for the hotel. He needed to find Doyle and sit down and talk with his old friend.e It ItI


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 21**

Cordelia slowly climbed out of Wesley's SUV, careful to not disturb the sleeping Liam in her arms. She had been released from the hospital after a few days and was now finally in front of her apartment, ready to take Liam home.

Any other parent would be happy for this moment, Cordelia thought, though she was happy. She was glad to finally get Liam home and into a routine, but she was sad she had to do it alone. It shouldn't be like this, Liam's father should be helping her. Angel should be there.

"Is this everything, Cordelia?" Wesley asked, holding up two small bags he pulled from the trunk.

Cordelia nodded, feeling Liam move in her arms. She looked down to see the child was awake now. "Hey baby." Cordelia smiled down at her son.

Liam only blinked a few times at Cordelia and then yawned.

"Let's get you two upstairs, shall we?" Wesley asked, carefully following Cordelia to her apartment, a step or two behind her just in case she lost her footing, not that he expected her to, but he just felt the need to watch out for her and Liam, especially since Angel wasn't around to do it.

Once Cordelia opened the door to her apartment she was immediately greeted with congratulation balloons courtesy of Phantom Dennis.

"Dennis!" Cordelia smiled, calling out to her ghost. "You didn't have to do this."

"I think Gunn and Connor helped." Wesley said, knowing that yesterday Gunn had brought Connor over to decorate the apartment for Cordelia and Liam's arrival home.

"Well, we will have to thank them, huh Liam?" Cordelia cooed at the child in her arms. She then turned to Wesley. "Where is Connor anyway?"

"Gunn and Fred are bringing him over in a little." Wesley said.

Cordelia nodded, anxious to see Connor. She had seen him the day before, but only in the morning when Fred had stopped by with him. He had been staying with Gunn and Fred at the hotel while Wesley and Lorne had taken turns staying with Cordelia at the hospital. Cordelia was grateful to have her family around.

"Anyway, do you want me to stay and wait for them or…?" Wesley asked.

"You can go, Wes." Cordelia told him. "I'll be fine. I am just going to feed Liam and then try and get some of my stuff unpacked."

"You're certain?" Wesley asked. It wasn't that he did not want to hang around longer; it was just that he had some work to do back at the hotel if they ever had a chance in hell of finding Angel.

"Yeah." Cordelia nodded at her friend. "We are fine, right Liam?" She asked the child in her arms who only scrunched up his face. Clearly, he was starting to get hungry.

"Alright then." Wesley nodded, opening the door. "I will see you later, Cordelia. Call if you need anything."

"I will." Cordelia nodded, watching Wesley shut the door behind him as she took a seat on the couch and lifted her shirt, undoing the nursing bra she was wearing and gently lifting Liam up to her breast to feed him. As he ate she studied his face more. He was four days old, and already his eyes seemed to be changing color. Perhaps they would be brown like hers and Angel's after all. She was not really sure where blue had come from anyway. On Connor, she assumed from Darla's side, but on Liam she was uncertain. No one in her family had blue eyes, and she didn't think anyone on Angel's would either. Not that she would know, his family was long dead, and not like she could ask him either.

Cordelia sighed, running he hand over Liam's face and leaning back into the couch, waiting for Connor to come home and trying anything to get her thoughts away from Angel, if only for a few minutes. She found this impossible, however, because every time she looked down at the child she was feeding she recognized another feature on Liam that only proved more that he was indeed Angel's son.

Angel moved in the shadows of the small hotel room he shared with Buffy. It had been a few days since Buffy had lied to Angel, but he had yet to confront her about it. He was too busy bustling around the hotel looking for Doyle, who he had not seen since the night Doyle had given a clue as to who he really was.

Buffy had not been overly friendly with Angel either, able to tell something was eating at the vampire.

Angel opened the small fridge in the corner of the room, pulling out a pint of blood to drink. He was hungry, and had spent all morning looking for Doyle, without any sign of his dead ex-seer.

"Hungry?" Buffy asked, from her spot on the bed.

"Yeah." Angel replied sampling, gulping down the blood and hoping his conversation with the slayer would end at that.

Buffy, however, was sick of the silence between them. "So are you going to tell me what the hell's been up with you or are you just going to keep brooding around here?"

Angel glared at Buffy. He was ready to tell her off, he was ready to tell her he knew she was a liar, and he wanted to know why. "You know what..." He began, but was cut off by the phone.

Buffy moved, and picked the phone up. "Hello…yeah…okay…thanks." She hung it up and turned to him. "That was the front desk. They said someone was downstairs to see you." Raising an eyebrow and wondering who had found the vampire with a soul. She prayed it was not anyone who knew the prophecy was false or that Cordelia was the mother of Angel's child. If it was, Buffy knew she had lost Angel forever.

Angel nodded. "Fine." He blew past her before she could say another word, and he raced down the stairs. He was sure the visitor was Doyle, who else would it be? He opened the door to the lobby and moved to the counter, almost bumping into a well dressed woman. "Sorry…" He apologized to her.

The woman turned to Angel with a smile that Angel swore he would never see again.

"Hello, Angel." Lilah grinned.

"Lilah?" Angel was surprised to see the lawyer but clenched his jaw. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Looking for you." Lilah smirked. "I just wanted to tell you something."

"What?" Angel asked, pondering if he should knock her out now or wait until no one could see him.

"We have her. We have Cordelia and Connor." Lilah lied to the vampire. This was the plan she, Gavin, and the Senior Partners had decided on in order to get Angel into Wolfram and Hart. They would lie about Cordelia and Connor's safety.

"What?" Angel growled, grabbing Lilah by the throat and not caring if any other guest could see him.

"I wouldn't do that." Lilah said, trying not to gasp for air. "You kill me and they both are as good as dead."

"Where are they?" Angel asked.

"Safe. For now." Lilah told him as she felt the hand around her neck loosen. "But I can't promise it will stay that way."

"What do you want?" Angel asked.

"For you to come with me." Lilah told him.

Angel didn't even need to think. He would do anything to ensure Cordelia and Connor, and now Cordelia's new child's safety. He nodded at Lilah. "Okay."

Lilah smiled, pointing to the black limo that was parked in the shade out front of the hotel. She then watched as Angel swiftly made his way to the car, avoiding the direct sunlight. She couldn't believe how easy it had been to convince the vampire that the people he loved were in danger and she couldn't believe how she had just brought Wolfram and Hart one step closer to releasing Angelus.

Cordelia had gotten Liam situated in a small baby carrier on her bed as she slowly went to work unpacking her bag from the hospital. Every once and awhile she would glance up at Liam to see her son watching her, but looking content enough. He was definitely a good baby. He had hardly cried since Cordelia had given birth to him and she was grateful for that.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Cordelia moved to Liam, taking him out of his carrier. "I wonder who that is. Maybe your big brother?" Cordelia cooed at the infant as she made her way to the front door, opening it to see Connor rushing in as fast as his toddler legs would carry him and Gunn and Fred both standing there with grocery bags in their hands.

"We figured you weren't going to get to go shopping anytime soon." Gunn held up the grocery bags as he took a step into Cordelia's apartment with Fred following him.

"Thank you guys." Cordelia gave Gunn a kiss on the cheek.

"So how is Liam?" Fred asked, glancing at the infant in Cordelia's arms.

"He's good. Just fed him." Cordelia smiled down at her son.

"Mommy!" Connor squealed, unable to hold his excitement back anymore as he wrapped his little arms around Cordelia's leg. He was so happy to see his mother and little brother. "Misses you." He looked up at her with his big blue eyes.

Cordelia's heart almost broke at the sight of Connor on her leg. "I missed you too, sweetie. Why don't you come sit down with Mommy and Liam, huh?"

Connor nodded, rushing over to the couch and climbing up it as Cordelia carefully made her way over, carrying Liam.

"Well, why don't we give you guys some family time?" Gunn offered, making his way to the door.

Cordelia smiled up at Fred and Gunn. "Thank you guys so much for keeping any eye on Connor the past few days."

"No problem, Cordy." Fred smiled at the mother. "You know he is a good boy."

Cordelia nodded. "Yeah."

"Okay, well…call us if you need anything." Gunn waved to Cordelia and led Fred out the door.

"So…" Cordelia looked over at Connor who was practically on top of her. "How was staying with Uncle Gunn and Aunt Fred?"

"Good." Connor nodded, looking over at Liam and pointing to the infant. "Liam." He could say his brother's name perfectly.

Cordelia nodded. "Yup, that's Liam." She gently stroked the infant's cheek, causing Liam's face to squish up.

Connor giggled at Liam's reaction to Cordelia's hand. "He no like that."

Cordelia laughed and then looked down at Connor. "So are you going to help Mommy take care of Liam since you're his big brother now?"

Connor puffed out his chest like a little man. "Yesss." He smiled, climbing up Cordelia's arm and giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Love you."

Cordelia nodded, kissing Connor back. "Love you too."

That seemed to be enough for Connor, who was interested in getting back to his trucks that he had left behind when Cordelia went into labor. He hopped off the couch and moved to his toys, busily running the objects into each other and making crashing noises. Cordelia sat back in the couch, rocking Liam and watching Connor. She hated that regardless of which child she looked at she saw their father, but she was grateful to have these two little pieces of Angel, in case they were all she would ever have of him anymore.

Angel had been gone for close to two hours now and Buffy was starting to worry. She was afraid someone had found them and told Angel the truth about the prophecy and that he was really the father of Cordelia's child. Buffy sighed, finally having enough of looking at the four walls of the small hotel room. She jumped off the bed and made her way down the stairs to the main lobby.

When she arrived at the lobby, she found it empty, not even the manager at the desk.

"Weird…" Buffy mumbled to herself.

Her words startled someone in the back room, behind the desk because the little bellboy that seemed to annoy Angel so much stuck his head out. "Can I help…" His voice trailed off when he realized it was Buffy.

"The guy I am with. The one you like to bother. I am looking for him." Buffy said, not knowing the bellboy was actually Doyle in disguise.

"What? Did he get enough sense to leave ya?" Doyle did not dislike Buffy as a person, he just disliked how she had manipulated and wrecked every little chance Angel had of getting his family back.

"Have you seen him or not?" Buffy let Doyle's comment role right over her.

"No." Doyle said.

"Some help you are…" Buffy sighed, moving to the front door.

"You're not much help yourself, Slayer." Doyle said.

Buffy turned to the bellboy and realized he was a bellboy no more, now he was a short man with dark hair and a familiar face. Buffy recognized him from somewhere. "Who the hell are you?"

"Come on now, we've met before." Doyle reminded her of the time she came to Los Angeles to yell at Angel before he had given up his life to save the half-breeds.

"Well, you look familiar." Buffy narrowed her eyes, walking back over to Doyle. "But sometimes that's not a good thing with me."

"I was Angel's seer." Doyle folded his arms. He was already dead, the Slayer could not do much to him now. "Before Cordelia."

Buffy nodded slowly, remembering Doyle. "I thought you were dead."

"I am." Doyle said flatly. "I am back to help Angel, set him on his coarse, get him back to his son's and the woman he loves."

"He doesn't love Cordelia." Buffy said.

"That's where you're wrong." Doyle told her. "He loves the princess. And trust me, when he finds out she had his son…"

"She had it?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

Doyle nodded. "She did. A healthy baby boy, and if I have anythin' to do with it, Angel is goin' to meet that boy."

"Doubtful." Buffy told Doyle. She was not about to lose Angel, not to Cordelia, not ever.

"You need to go." Doyle stepped toe-to-toe with the Slayer. "Now."

"You can't control me or what I do." Buffy stepped into Doyle.

"Oh yeah? Well little miss…" Before Doyle could finish his insult, he and Buffy found themselves in the grate abyss of nothing that Doyle had visited frequently.

"Where the hell am I now?" Buffy whined.

"Silence Slayer." The First Powers voice bellowed.

Doyle snickered, only to be cut off by the Third Power.

"You as well!" The Third Power Said to Doyle.

"Who the hell are you?" Buffy was not about to be told what to do by some high and mighty voices.

"We are the Powers That Be." The Second Power said.

"We hold the mission." The Third Power said.

"We grant the prophecies." The First Power finished.

Buffy raised an eyebrow as if asking Doyle if it were true. He only nodded at the Slayer.

"We have brought you here for a task." The Second Power said.

"One you shall work together on." The First Power added.

Doyle looked at Buffy. "Like hell I am workin' with her!"

"Same." Buffy crossed her arms over her chest, eyeing Doyle up and deciding she could take him if she had to.

"Silence!" The First Power bellowed again.

"The Champion is in danger." The Third Power started.

"Who? Angel?" Doyle seemed to panic.

"The vampire has been deceived by a lie." The Second Power said.

"No crap…" Doyle mumbled. Everything about the situation Angel was in was a lie.

"The evil has taken him…" The Third Power said.

"For they want Angelus." The First Power explained.

"Who does? Who wants Angelus?" It was Buffy's turn to panic.

Doyle, however, already had the answer. "Wolfram and Hart."

"It is true." The Third Power said.

"You must save the Champion now." The Second Power told them.

"Then the Slayer must leave." The First Power said.

"What? No…" Buffy started but was cut off by the Second Power.

"The Champions heart is no longer yours. It belongs to the seer." The Second Power said.

"And the seer returns hers." The First Power added.

"So we save Angel and he gets to go back to Cordelia?" Doyle asked.

"In a sense." The First Power said.

"What do you mean?" Doyle asked.

"The Champion has still not suffered, but we did not anticipate Angelus." The Third Power explained.

"We shall release the Champion and give him his reward as long as the beast is defeated." The Second Power told them.

"The Beast?" Doyle asked. "You mean Angelus?"

"You shall see…" The First Power said.

"No! No cryptic crap!" Doyle was annoyed now.

"Save the Champion." The Second Power told them, and then before Buffy and Doyle knew it they were back in the hotel lobby.

Doyle looked at Buffy. "Crap. This could be bad."

Buffy nodded. "We need to find Angel."

"At least we can agree on something." Doyle said, leading Buffy out the door of the hotel.

Wesley sighed from his spot at the counter as he saw Fred and Gunn enter the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel. Lorne had come back from the club a few minutes ago and was in the kitchen making himself a sea breeze.

"You look excited." Gunn commented sarcastically.

"How was Cordelia?" Lorne asked, entering the lobby.

"She seemed okay." Fred told them. "She seemed happy to have Liam home."

Wesley nodded. "She had said in the car she couldn't wait to get him in the house and all situated."

"Make sense." Gunn nodded. "I mean, those two boys are her life now, at least until we get Angel back."

"That's why I look so excited." Wesley said.

Gunn raised an eyebrow, leaning his elbows on the counter. "What do you mean?"

"We're not going to find him." Wesley stated.

"What?" Fred was startled by what Wesley had said. "Why would you say that Wes? We will find him. We have to!"

"But we won't." Wesley stated again. "I thought I had him, I thought I knew where he was. I had an informant over in Ireland who could have sworn he had seen Angel here and there."

"And you didn't tell us?" Lorne was shocked.

"I didn't want to get anyone's hopes up." Wesley explained. "But my informant got killed and anything he was getting at is lost."

"Yeah, but if we think Angel is in Ireland, maybe we can find him." Fred said.

"It took us over eight months to get that he may be in Ireland. Even then I am not certain. Maybe he just doesn't want to be found." Wesley said.

"Because he doesn't know that he isn't a danger to anyone." Gunn pressed.

"Buffy has been missing just as long." Wesley sighed. "She must have found him, and he must be content."

"So what? Now we just give up? Is that it?" Gunn asked.

"I think we need to refocus." Wesley told them. "Cordelia, Connor, and Liam are our top priority now. I don't think we should give up, but I think we should stop living in a fantasy world that he is going to come back. I think we need to be ready to live a life without Angel in it. It's all we can do for Cordelia's sake. We can't keep her false hope alive, it's not healthy for her. She can't live in the past when she has so much to live for now."

Everyone in the room was silent when Wesley finished and no one was making eye contact with anyone. None of them wanted to admit that maybe Wesley had a point. Maybe Angel really was lost to them.

Angel grumbled, his head feeling like he had drank enough beer for his lifetime, and that was a long life time. He moved to bring his hand to his throbbing forehead, but his arm wouldn't move. He looked to see his hands were chained to the wall behind him. Angel panicked, pulling at the chains and looking around to see his was in some sort of laboratory.

"What the…" Angel started, trying to think back to the last thing he remembered. Suddenly he yanked hard on the chains. "Damn it! Lilah!" Angel growled, remembering he had run into the lawyer before he had somehow ended up wherever he was.

Angel glanced around, having a better feeling where he was as his thoughts became more clear. He was definitely in one of the Wolfram and Hart office of Ireland, _again_.

Suddenly, the lights in the lab went brighter and Lilah seemed to appear out of nowhere. "Hello, Angel."

"You're a bitch." Angel growled.

"It's what I strive on." Lilah said as she felt Gavin move to her side.

"Gavin!" Angel was even more pissed now.

"Watch the tone, Angel." Gavin smirked. "Wouldn't want to piss anyone off who has access to your precious Cordelia or Connor…"

"You leave them alone!" Angel yanked hard on the chains, trying to rip them from the wall.

"We will…as long as you corporate." Lilah said calmly.

"What the hell do you want?" Angel said after a minute of silence. He lowered his head, as if ready to accept his fate.

"You know what we want." Gavin told him.

Angel looked up at the two lawyers, not saying a word.

"We want Angelus." Lilah told him. "We get him, and Cordelia, Connor, and the new baby go unharmed into the night."

"I let you have him and he will destroy them. He will find them and rip them apart because they are all that matters to me." Angel said, no emotion in his voice. "I can't let you do that."

"We will have complete control over Angelus. He will do nothing we are unaware of." Lilah told him. "Don't you think the Senior Partner's have waited for this moment?"

"I can't trust a word you say." Angel told them. "For all I know Cordelia is already dead." He did not want to think like that, but he was dealing with Wolfram and Hart.

"As much as a manipulative bitch as I am, have I ever actually lied to you, Angel?" Lilah questioned, although she knew she had, right now. She was lying to him about Cordelia and Connor and the new child completely, she honestly had no idea where they were nor did she care, as long as Angel thought they were in danger.

Angel thought for a minute. As twisted as it sounded, Lilah was right. She never had actually lied to him in the past. After a minute he looked up. "I can't just give my soul up."

"It's a hard decision, we know." Lilah told him. "We will give you a week to decide."

Before Angel could say another word, Lilah and Gavin had shut the lights down in the lab and left Angel to himself in a dimly lit corner with only the one decision he had to make on his mind.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 22**

It had been nearly a week since Angel had gone missing at the hands of Wolfram and Hart and Doyle and Buffy still were arguing over which plan of attack to use in order to save Angel. Lucky for them, they knew they had time. The Powers had informed them a few days ago that Angelus, if released at all, would not be released for another day or so. Still, their time was winding down.

"We really need to focus here and decide on what we're goin' to do." Doyle said, sitting in the chair across from the bed of the hotel that Buffy was sitting on.

"I'm aware, but so far all of yours have sucked." Buffy told Doyle.

Doyle made a face at the Slayer. True, his plans had not been very good, but it was still better then what she had contributed, which was next to nothing. He knew it didn't help that they spent the majority of their time together bickering, but the Slayer was really starting to get on his nerves. Doyle couldn't see what Angel had ever seen in Buffy.

"Look…" Buffy sighed after a minute. "We are running out of time, and just because we don't like each other enough to agree with one another's idea, doesn't mean we should just let Wolfram and Hart release Angelus."

"Smartest thing you've said all week." Doyle told her.

"I know what Angelus is capable of." Buffy ignored Doyle's comment. "Believe me. We need to get in there and get Angel out."

"Well, you've rescued him from there before." Doyle reminded her. "So what's the easiest way in?"

"Front door." Buffy told him.

"Can't say that's a good idea…" Doyle told her.

"We just need to get in there and get out. Fastest way is through the front. I can take some of the guards out if that's what you're worried about, and you can rescue Angel." Buffy said. "I mean, it's not like you can really get hurt, you're already dead."

"True…" Doyle nodded. For once, the Slayer did have a point. "Okay, fine. Sounds like we have a plan now."

"Tomorrow night?" Buffy suggested for their plan to take place.

Doyle nodded. "We need to get some rest before we do this."

"Yeah." Buffy agreed, laying back in the bed of the room she had shared with Angel. She was worried now about two things mainly, the first being Angelus and the second was losing Angel to Cordelia, which she felt like was going to happen sooner or later. The odds were stacked against her, especially now with Doyle in the picture. She needed to get rid of the ex-seer once she saved Angel, she decided.

Cordelia tried her best to grab Connor by the collar of his shirt as she balanced Liam in her other hand. The infant was a little over a week old, and already seemed to have developed Angel's quiet ways. The child rarely made a sound unless Cordelia spoke to him or Connor antagonized him.

"Connor Angel, you stop running right now and get these socks on!" Cordelia held the socks in her free hand up, managing to bounce Liam in her other arm. She was a natural and had the "whole mother of two thing" down in a second.

Connor shook his head from his spot across the living room. "Noooo."

"Connor…listen to me." Cordelia might have had the mothering thing down, but she was still only human, half human at least, and she was tired and drained and losing her patients. "I need to put these socks on right now!"

"Noooope." Connor grinned and took off toward Cordelia's bedroom.

"Connor!" Cordelia chased after her son, feeling Liam nuzzle closer to her as her stride grew bigger. She entered her bedroom and immediately saw Connor trying to wiggle under her bed. She immediately pulled him out by his leg and he huffed, kicking her in the hand. Cordelia was taken back by Connor's kick enough to let him go and he scrambled to the corner of her room.

"Connor…" Cordelia moved toward her oldest son who now had no where to go. "Just let Mommy put these socks on so we can go over to the hotel, please?"

"No!" Connor screamed as if he were throwing a fit.

Connor's screams seemed to finally get to Liam who now unleashed his own scream.

"That's it…" Cordelia had enough of Connor's attitude and now he had upset Liam. She quickly grabbed Connor by the collar and pulled him toward her, not letting him go as she put Liam in his baby carrier that was on her bed.

"Mommy…noooo!" Connor tried to wiggle out of Cordelia's grasp.

"Yes…" Cordelia told him, not understanding why Connor had all the sudden become such a rebel. He had never acted like this in the past, he usually would do anything Cordelia asked him to.

Connor let out a sigh and scrunched his face up at Cordelia to let her know he was not happy about putting his socks on.

"What is with you, today?" Cordelia asked him, as she pulled one sock on his foot. "Are you cranky? Do you need a nap?"

"No." Connor told her simply.

"You kicked Mommy before." Cordelia reminded him. "Why?"

"No want socks." Connor pointed to his feet.

"You don't kick because of that, do you understand?" Cordelia reprimanded him. "Next time you do that you are going on time out, understood?"

Connor nodded weakly, clearly conquered.

Cordelia sighed, standing and running a hand through her hand. "Good. Now let's get going."

Connor nodded, slumping his head down in defeat and slowly making his way out of Cordelia's bedroom.

Cordelia watched Connor walk out as she gently picked up Liam from his carrier. He had stopped crying shortly after he started and was now just watching Cordelia very intensely.

"Sorry Connor scared you, sweetie." Cordelia apologized to Liam. "Your big brother was just having a moment, I think he is about to hit those terrible twos soon…" She sighed, gathering Liam's diaper bag and making her way out of her bedroom. She thought back to what had just happened with Connor and it only made her miss Angel more. He should be there, helping reprimand his son alongside her. She shouldn't be doing it alone.

Angel slumped against the wall of the basement of the Dublin Wolfram and Hart. He had been down there for nearly a weak and his wrists were raw from the shackles that held him in place. He had barely been given any blood, just enough to keep him alive, and no one had spoken to him since the day Lilah and Gavin told him he had a decision to make.

The more Angel thought about that decision, the more he started to sway from his original stand of never letting Angelus take another breath again.

After all, Wolfram and Hart would more than likely be able to handle Angelus, and Angel knew that even if Angelus got out the last place he would be going in Los Angeles. He would want to deal with Buffy first, and then Willow for re-ensouling him before Buffy sent them both to hell.

Angel actually thought Cordelia and Connor would be relatively safe. After all, Connor was the product of Angel and Darla and Angelus had always felt deeply for Darla, and Cordelia was the one raising Connor. If anything, Angelus would probably feel the need to protect his offspring and its caregiver as much as a vampire would want to protect its sire or childe.

The more Angel thought about it, the more he contemplated it. He knew it probably didn't help to have Angelus' voice creeping into his mind every so often but Angel was too weak and too tired to care anymore. He knew he had little time left in making his decision, and he knew that the most important thing now was to keep Cordelia, Connor, and Cordelia's new child safe no matter what.

Wesley moved out of his office, balancing a stack of papers in his hand that he dumped into the large trash bag next to Fred who was scrubbing up the faded scorch marks that still remained from when Angel blew up some of the lobby in order to get away from Holtz before Connor was born.

"Is that the last of the stuff on Angel?" Gunn pointed to the papers Wesley had just thrown out as he worked on rearranging the weapons cabinet. They needed to keep more firearms in there now if they were going to continue to do their jobs effectively since none of them really had vampire strength

Wesley nodded. "Yeah."

They had all agreed that it was time to move on. Angel was gone and the only way he would come back would be in his own time now. They all knew they needed to try and be strong, leaving the memories of the souled vampire behind if they were going to be able to help support Cordelia and her children and help the seer move on and realize she still had so much life left to live.

"It's good to get the stuff out of the office." Lorne said as he handed Fred a new sponge from the kitchen to help her with the scrubbing.

"It was taking up a lot of space." Wesley agreed.

The entire group was trying to fluff over the fact that they had just basically thrown away any chance of getting Angel back when they threw away the papers. No one wanted to acknowledge that even if they had all already discussed and agreed on it.

"It will be weird." Fred finally spoke up, seeing the three men looking at her. "You know…not really focusing on finding him anymore."

"Who? Angel?" Gunn asked.

"No…" Fred said sarcastically. "Mr. Potato Head…yes Angel!"

"Well we all agreed this was for the best." Wesley reminded them.

"Yeah, Cordelia needs to move on. We all need to move on." Gunn added.

"But Angel is the reason we are all here in the first place…" Fred stated.

"But he's gone now." Gunn told her quickly. "He shouldn't even exsist anyway. Vampire with a soul? Come on now…"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lorne was, for some reason offended by Gunn's comment.

"It means what I just said." Gunn turned quickly. "It was a matter of time before we lost Angel. Whether it was like this or he turned on us. He's a demon…" Gunn didn't really agree with what he was saying, but it was how he was rationalizing letting go any hope of getting Angel back. To look at Angel for what he was; a demon.

"Angel's not like that!" Fred argued.

"He's a vampire." Gunn stated. "Just because he has a soul, doesn't make him human."

"It makes him better than us." Wesley said.

The argument was getting heated, and no one in the lobby had heard the door open, nor did they see Cordelia come in, balancing Liam in her arms and having Connor wrapped around her leg.

"He left." Gunn stated. "He ran away."

"He thought the prophecy was true, he couldn't have known." Wesley said.

"He didn't even try to fix it though, He didn't care enough." Gunn continued. "He left Cordelia to raise his demon babies while he couldn't get away fast enough. Cordelia didn't deserve that, and if Angel was anything like a real man he would have tried to come back!"

"He thinks he is a danger to his child!" Lorne argued. "He doesn't know any better!"

"He abandoned his child…his children!" Gunn glared. "And that's all vampires are good at. They take what they want and leave their consequences to someone else. Cordelia is stuck with the mistakes Angel made now!"

"These babies are not mistakes!" Cordelia's voice bellowed through the lobby, catching Gunn, Wesley, Fred, and Lorne all off guard.

"Cordy…" Fred started. "When did you get here?"

"About the time Gunn started his speech about Angel being nothing more than a vampire." Cordelia glared, trying to fight back tears.

"Cordy…I didn't mean…" Gunn started.

"It doesn't matter what you meant, Gunn. It's what you said." Cordelia told him.

"They are not mistakes." Gunn motioned to Connor and Liam. "It's just…Angel shouldn't have left you like this."

"He didn't know." Cordelia defended the vampire she loved. "He did what he thought was right. And he will make up for everything when he comes back."

"He's not coming back." Wesley would not make eye contact with Cordelia. He couldn't.

"What?" Cordelia's eyes glistened with tears now as she felt Wesley's words hit her, as if they were a truck.

"We can't keep this up, Cordelia." Wesley told her. "Angel is gone. We…we aren't going to find him."

"But…you said…" Cordelia started. "You promised me Wes…"

Wesley looked up at the seer. "I know, but if Angel doesn't want to be found he won't be."

"You're wrong!" Cordelia snapped, quickly making her way up the stairs to Angel's bedroom with Liam in her arms.

Connor looked at his aunt and all his uncles from his spot on the stairs. He then looked in the direction Cordelia had gone in and back to his family. "Mommy sad."

Fred nodded, moving and picking Connor up, and then glancing back at Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne. She knew in her heart they should all be ashamed of the way they had just acted toward Cordelia, but she also knew that they had to explain calmly to Cordelia the rationale behind their thoughts. She just hoped Cordelia would listen.

Buffy and Doyle stood outside of the Dublin Wolfram and Hart. They were both dressed in disguise with business suits on, although they were unsure if it would help them. They figured it would at least buy them a few minutes.

"Now…" Doyle started. "The trick is to act like you own the place…"

"I did get in here before, remember?" Buffy reminded Doyle.

"Right…right…" Doyle nodded his head.

"Okay, so let's do this." Buffy took a deep breath and lead Doyle up the steps of Wolfram and Hart.

The pair entered the building as if it were something they did every day, even taking the time to wave at an employee who waved back, seeming unsure if they should know Buffy and Doyle. Everything was going smoothly until the security guard at the front desk stopped them.

"IDs?" The security guard asked.

Doyle looked at the guard as if he had five heads, unsure of what to say, and then he heard Buffy's voice.

"The damn plane lost them." Buffy said. "That's the last time I fly publically from Los Angeles."

"Los Angeles?" The guard questioned.

"We work there." Buffy said, knowing her American accent only added authenticity to her story. She glanced over at Doyle, letting him know not to speak. "We are here to meet Lilah Morgan…in regards to the Angelus case."

The guard nodded slowly, seeming to buy Buffy's story. "I'll inform Miss Morgan you are here. She is in a meeting, but you can go wait in her office. It's on the fourth floor."

"Thank you." Buffy smiled at the guard and led Doyle to the elevator.

Once inside the elevator, Doyle turned to Buffy. "Nice job back there."

Buffy nodded. "Okay, Angel should be in the basement." She hit the button and after a minute or two the doors to the elevator opened to a long, dark hallway.

Buffy and Doyle stepped off the elevator and Doyle immediately realized that all of the doors in the hallway led to individual holding cells or labs.

"This is creepy." Doyle seemed to shiver.

Buffy nodded in agreement. "I know. Angel was down here last time thought, so start looking."

"I'll take the right side, you take the left." Doyle instructed as he moved to his side of the hall.

After moving up and down the hall for a few minutes, Doyle and Buffy found themselves back at the elevator with no sign of Angel.

"He isn't down here." Buffy said.

"Really? I hadn't noticed." Doyle said sarcastically.

"Well, we need to find him so let's get moving." Buffy went to turn back to the elevator when she felt two strong hands clamp down on her throat.

"You're not going anywhere, Slayer." The security guard from earlier held Buffy in her place and looked over at Doyle. "Neither are you!"

Two other guards grabbed Doyle, and it was evident to both Buffy and Doyle that these guards possessed strength far beyond any human and they both assumed whatever was about to come was going to be painful.

"Crap…" Buffy mumbled.

"Damn right." The guard told her. "Nice try with the lying up there too. It's too bad everyone knows who you are."

"What are we doing with them?" One of the guards who had Doyle asked.

"Miss Morgan will want to see them, I am sure." The guard holding Buffy said as he yanked her back toward the elevator, motioning for the guard holding Doyle to follow his lead back upstairs and up to the office of Lilah Morgan.

Cordelia made her way into Angel's old bedroom and immediately slammed the door shut, pulling Liam close to her and leaning against the door. She was so upset with the conversation she had walked in on that she felt numb.

She glanced around Angel's bedroom, noting it was exactly how he had left it, down to the empty water glass on the nightstand. She moved into the center of the room, closing her eyes and trying to imagine Angel walking around in there with her.

The faint scent of his cologne caught her attention and she opened her eyes to find Liam staring back up at her, his eyes the same shape and color as his fathers. He was a miniature Angel.

"Want to see where your Daddy used to live, sweetie?" Cordelia did not know why, but she felt compelled to show the room to Liam. She moved gracefully over to Angel's closet and opened it.

"See? Daddy wears a lot of black." Cordelia motioned to the multitude of black shirts in Angel's closet. "But Mommy was trying to add some flare to it…" She pulled out a green shirt she had bought Angel a few months before he left. It still had the tags on it. "Daddy didn't even get a chance to wear this one before…" Cordelia felt the tears weal in her eyes and she had to close the closet door.

Cordelia made her way to Angel's bed and sat down on it, still cradling Liam and feeling the tears move down her cheeks. Damn it, she missed Angel.

"Your Dad is coming back, Liam. I promise you." Cordelia told the infant in her arms. "I don't care what anyone says. Your Daddy will find his way back here. He has too. He has to meet you…" She traced her finger down Liam's cheek causing him to turn his head and try to put her finger in his mouth.

A knock on the door broke Cordelia from her trance. Her head snapped up quickly and she stared the door down, not saying a word though. A moment later another knock hit the door.

"Cordelia?" Fred's voice called out.

Cordelia did not respond. A second later another knock was heard, and this time, the voice on the other side of the door broke Cordelia's heart.

"Mommy? Pleasssssse let me an' Aun Freb in?" Connor's little voice came through the door.

Cordelia immediately stood and swung the door open, finding Connor flung around her legs and not letting her go for anything in a moment's notice.

"Can I come in, Cordelia?" Fred asked the mother of two.

"Sure." Cordelia nodded, trying to wipe up her tears as she balanced Liam in one hand and patted Connor on the back with the other.

Fred stepped into the room and Cordelia followed the best she could with Connor still attached to her leg.

"Look…" Fred started.

"Fred, you know what?" Cordelia cut her off. "I thought you guys were my friends, I thought you would support me through all of this…"

"We are supporting you, Cordelia." Fred stressed. "We are all so proud of what you are doing. You're a great mother to these two." She motioned to Liam and Connor.

"Then why did you say all that down there? Giving up on Angel is not supporting me or my babies!" Cordelia couldn't help the rage that was coming over her.

"Cordelia…we just don't want you to hold onto this." Fred tried to explain. "Angel may never come back…"

"But what if he does?" Cordelia asked, her body shaking now from nerves. She could tell her was upsetting Liam because the infant was starting to squirm in her arms a bit, but she couldn't help it. She was just so distressed. "What if he comes back? I can't just forget about him."

"And we aren't telling you to do that, Cordy." Fred told her. "We just want you to realize what you have in your life right now. You have two beautiful children who need their mother to be there for them."

"And I have been." Cordelia defended herself. "And I always will be."

"But they need you to focus on them completely now, Cordelia. Not on Angel." Fred told her gently. "We just don't want you to live so much in the past that you let this beautiful life with these two great kids slip by. They need you. You are all they have now."

Cordelia looked down at Liam in her arms, and Connor who was now leaning on her left leg with one hand wrapped around it and the other one's thumb in his mouth. Fred was right. These boys were her life now and she couldn't be afraid to do things with them for fear that Angel might miss some special moment.

Cordelia looked back up at Fred and nodded slightly, trying to fight back her tears. "I know. I love my boys. I want to give them everything…it's just…Fred I miss Angel so much." She seemed to lose it, and began crying.

Fred moved, wrapping her arms around Cordelia, careful to not squish Liam. She rubbed the seers back. "Cordy, I know you miss him. I know you do and there is nothing wrong with that. We all miss him, but we need to start to pick the pieces back up now. You know? Put the puzzle back together."

Cordelia nodded, lifting her head off Fred's shoulder and getting control of her tears again. "Yeah. You're right."

Fred nodded, giving Cordelia a small smile. "Okay."

"Mommy?" Connor tugged on Cordelia's leg. "You 'kay?"

"Yeah, baby." Cordelia bent down, pulling Connor in for a tight hug with one arm while still managing to hold Liam in the other. "Mommy's okay."

Fred silently slid out of the room, allowing Cordelia to have the moment with her son's to herself. Fred was glad she was able to make Cordelia see where they were coming from, but she was still worried about the seer. She could only imagine how hard single-motherhood could be for a normal woman, but Cordelia wasn't even that. She was half demon, a seer, and had the only two children in history to be fathered by a vampire. Cordelia would never have it easy.

Angel felt himself being yanked by his cuffed hands and thrown onto a carpeted floor. He was so weak and so tired. He then felt the guards leave his side but he did not even have enough energy left to try and stand and run out of wherever he was. He barely had enough energy to lift his head as he sat on his knees.

"Well, Angel." Lilah flicked the lights to her office on as she and Gavin made their way into the room. "It's been a week, and we need your decision."

Angel looked up at Lilah but did not answer right away.

Suddenly, a knock on the office door shifted Lilah's attention. "Gavin, get that, will you?"

Gavin opened the door and stepped aside to reveal to Lilah who was there. "Well, look who it is."

Lilah looked over to see Doyle and Buffy, held by security guards, with their mouths gagged so neither could make much sound.

"Well…good to have you two." Lilah motioned the guard to pull Buffy and Doyle into the room, but not anywhere in Angel's view.

Angel didn't care who was there though, he was much too weak to move to see either. He just wanted it all to be over with.

Lilah focused her attention back onto the vampire kneeling in front of her desk with his hands cuffed behind his back. "Well, Angel? That decision? Do we get Angelus or do we get Cordelia and the children?"

Angel glared up at Lilah with all the defiance he had left. "You won't hurt Cordelia? You'll let her go, leave her alone?"

Lilah nodded. "You have my word on it. Honestly. I won't let anyone near them." Lilah was able to speak the words sincerely because they were true. She wouldn't harm Cordelia because the firm didn't even have Cordelia.

Angel looked down at the ground for a second, swallowing the lump in his throat before looking back up at Lilah. "Fine. Angelus is all yours."

Lilah grinned as Angel's head sunk back down and Buffy tried her best to scream "NO" through the gag in her mouth, but her screams came out as muffled sounds.


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 23**

Doyle rubbed his head, still feeling the lump he had sustained three days earlier from the Wolfram and Hart guard after Lilah ordered the guards to beat both himself and Buffy senseless before throwing them out onto the street.

Doyle nudged the girl lying next to him, and Buffy slowly lifted her head off the bed of the room she had Angel had previously shared at the hotel. Now she and Doyle lay side by side, beaten and broken.

"What?" Buffy said weakly. She was numb. Angelus was back, or would be back soon enough and she had never been so damaged in her life. She didn't even know someone could feel as much physical pain as she was feeling.

"Can you move?" Doyle asked, knowing the past few days the pair had been lucky to be alive.

Buffy slowly sat up on her elbows. "A little…"

"Good." Doyle also sat up slowly. "Because we need to get movin' as soon as we both can."

"What for?" Buffy allowed herself to sink back down into the bed as she stared up at the ceiling.

"What do you mean? For Angelus, damn it! We need to stop that, remember?" Doyle couldn't believe how stupid the Slayer could be sometimes.

Buffy just shook her head. "It doesn't matter. We can't stop it. Angelus will come and we will fight him, and we won't win."

"What are you talkin' bout?" Doyle looked at the Slayer who was still staring at the ceiling.

"How do you kill someone with the face of an angel?" Buffy asked, then looked over at Doyle. "With the face of Angel?"

"We're not gonna kill him." Doyle told her. "We're gonna save him."

Buffy shook her head, looking out the window. "You have no idea what he is. You don't know what we are dealing with."

"So what do you suggest we do?" Doyle asked.

Buffy shrugged. "Nothing. We can't do anything." She slowly sat up, still looking out the window. "I'm going home."

"What?" Doyle was in shock.

Buffy shook her head. "I failed Angel. I lost him. We can't save him now either."

"You don't know that." Doyle told her.

Buffy turned to the dead half-breed. "Damn if I don't. I was the one who sent Angelus…Angel to hell! I did this already. I can't do it again."

"So you just give up?" Doyle shook his head at how cowardly Buffy was acting.

"I'm just going to buy some time." She slowly stood. "Angelus will be after me, I'm sure of it." She moved toward her things, and then turned back to Doyle. "Actually, I am counting on it."

Doyle just sat there, studying Buffy as she slowly began packing up her things and wondering if she was right. She did raise one point and that was that she knew Angelus far better than he did. She had met the monster while he had only seen glimpses of Angelus when he had first gotten the visions. Maybe she did know Angelus better then he could imagine.

Cordelia folded laundry on the couch as Connor played with his trucks on the floor and Liam sat in his baby carrier that sat on the coffee table in front of her. She had just finished nursing Liam and was sure he would fall asleep soon. Connor, on the other hand, had been a handful lately to even put down for a nap. She was worried his terrible twos were hitting, and she wasn't sure if she could handle them. Not now, not when she was alone and with a newborn.

"Mommy?" Connor looked up from his toys.

"Yeah, sweetie?" Cordelia continued to fold the laundry, working on a pair of Connor's little jeans that Fred and Gunn had bought him while they were watching him, since they had taught him to be potty trained. He was a smart baby, and had picked it up quickly, so his reward had been "big boy pants".

"You is sad." Connor told her.

"What?" Cordelia looked up at Connor, confused.

"You sad." Connor told her again, and then stood, sighing and looking so much like Angel. "You no happy anymore."

"Sweetie, of course I am happy." Cordelia told him, although she wasn't sure if that was actually true. Sure, she was happy to have her sons, but she did miss Angel a lot. "Come here." She motioned for Connor.

Connor reluctantly made his way around the coffee table that Liam was perched on and over to Cordelia who pulled him in between her legs.

"Why would you say that?" Cordelia asked him.

"You cry." Connor said. "When I is sleep, you cry."

Cordelia studied Connor for a minute. He was right. The past few nights, after she had put both him and Liam to bed, she had cried. She was just so overwhelmed with everything, and her hormones were still out of whack from giving birth to Liam two weeks earlier. "How do you know?"

"I hears you." Connor told her, resting his little hands on her legs. "I no want you to cry."

"Well, I don't want to cry either." Cordelia told him truthfully.

"I sorry." Connor said.

"What? Sorry for what, sweetie?" Cordelia could not imagine what Connor was apologizing for.

"For makin' you sad. I not good all the time." Connor admitted, knowing he had made Cordelia mad enough to yell at him one or two times in the past week.

"Well, usually you are." Cordelia told him. "But how about you try to be good for Mommy, and I will try not to cry as much? Deal?"

Connor nodded, and grabbed Cordelia's neck, pulling her down to him and hugging her.

Cordelia smiled, pulling Connor in close to her and holding him for a second as she watched Liam drift to sleep in his carrier. Suddenly, however, her hands went Liam around Connor as the vision rushed over her.

The vision was of herself and Angel. Angel was back, and he was grinning wildly at her as she held Liam. He looked over at the child in her arms and smiled even wider. She had seen that smile before, although she couldn't remember it on Angel; that smile sent a chill down her spin, but she shook it off. And then the vision was over.

Cordelia blinked, unable to believe the vision she had just had. Angel was coming back, she had known it all along, and he would meet his sons. She was in complete shock, as she pulled Connor in for a hug again.

"Mommy happy?" Connor asked, trying to wiggle his way out of Cordelia's arms.

"Yeah. Mommy's very happy." Cordelia told him truthfully as she pulled him in closer for yet another hug, knowing that it was only a matter of time before Angel was back in her life as well as in his son's lives.

Angel laid on the table in the lab of Wolfram and Hart as they shackled his arms and legs to the table, just in case Angelus had any other ideas when they brought him forth. Angel felt numb inside, knowing that there was little time felt before Angelus was brought forth and he himself was lost forever.

Once Angel had agreed to allow Wolfram and Hart to take his soul, Lilah had wasted no time in finding the perfect person to do the job. After a few days of searching they settled on an executive from the Australian branch of Wolfram and Hart who also specialized in extracting souls. His name was Roger Taterman, and he was now standing at the head of the table Angel was laying on.

"Well, this should be interesting." Roger looked down at Angel with a vicious smile.

"You think?" Angel shot back.

"I have read many things about the great Angelus…" Roger continued.

"Haven't we all?" Lilah said, bored with Roger's prolonging of the situation, as she stood at the foot of the table Angel was on. She wanted Angelus, and she wanted him now.

"Be patient, Miss Morgan." Roger said as he opened a book that was sitting on the counter. "This may take some time."

Angel sighed, shutting his eyes and letting his thoughts drift back to Cordelia and Connor. He missed them both so much, they were his entire world, his reason for existing, and he couldn't be with them. He realized only now that bringing Angelus forth would not make such a drastic difference in the world, he realized now that the Angel he had been, the Champion, that man, that vampire had already die back when Wesley had discovered the prophecy and he had left Los Angeles.

Wesley and Gunn made their way down the stairs when they heard the front door to the hotel open. Lorne and Fred had gone to Carita's because Lorne needed a "female's opinion" on some of the new things he had ordered to redecorate the place. He had decided it would be a good idea to open it up again since it seemed like Angel was not coming back and therefore Angel Investigations would not take up too much of his time, even though they had decided as a group to keep the agency open.

"What were you two doing up there?" Fred asked as she watched Gunn and Wesley come down the stairs.

"Checking out the rooms." Gunn kissed her on the cheek.

"What for?" Lorne asked, making his way over to the mini-bar he had put behind the counter.

"Well, we were thinking that maybe we could clean one of the bigger rooms up." Wesley said.

"For…" Fred hated having to pump information out of the guys. It was like pulling teeth.

"We just thought that it would be a good idea to try to get Cordelia to move back…" Gunn started.

"No!" Fred cut him off instantly. "We are not going to push moving back in on her."

"Hey, relax." Gunn put a hand on her shoulder. "It was just an idea."

"And probably a good one at that." Wesley said. "Cordelia should have us helping her, and watching out for her and the boys."

"We're already been through this." Fred reminded them. "She doesn't want to live here, and why would she? Look around! This place is full of Angel. There are too many memories for her here."

"And it's gonna stay that way until she makes new ones." Gunn said. "It will help her in the long run if she comes back here."

"No, it won't." Fred repeated herself. "If Cordy wanted to move back in, she would,"

"You're not understanding…" Wesley started.

"No, you don't understand." Fred shot back. "Just because she isn't mad at us about the way we spoke of Angel a few days ago, doesn't mean her heart isn't broken. And just because she agreed that it was time to move on, doesn't mean she is going to forget Angel and all of the memories overnight. She needs time." She moved toward the kitchen, indicating that the conversation was over.

Once Fred was out of the lobby, Wesley looked up at Gunn.

"Fred doesn't understand." Wesley said.

"I know…" Gunn looked in the direction of his girlfriend.

"Do you want my opinion?" Lorne leaned against the counter, sipping his seabreeze.

Gunn raised an eyebrow at Lorne. "I feel like it doesn't matter if we want it."

"You're right." Lorne told him. "And my opinion is, Fred is right. You can't force anything onto Cordelia, especially not now. She is taking baby steps, don't ask her to run a mile right now. She needs time."

Gunn and Wesley looked at each other, realizing they were both thinking the same exact thing; maybe Lorne and Fred were right. Maybe they needed to give Cordelia some time to get everything back together. After all, she was strong, but she wasn't invincible.

Buffy had finally packed all of her things up, fitting them into the little suitcase she had brought with her originally to Ireland. Doyle sat across the room from her on the bed, but the two had not spoken since Buffy had declared she was leaving. Buffy couldn't help but feel Doyle was disappointed in her; not that she cared too much. He didn't understand her reasons for leaving. How could he? He didn't _know_ Angelus.

"Well…" Buffy pulled her bag up. "I guess this is it."

Doyle didn't look at the Slayer. He was too angry she was running from the problem that they both needed to face. "Don't let the door hit ya in the ass."

"You don't get it." Buffy said. "I am doing what's right. Trust me."

"I don't." Doyle looked over at her. "And if ya think 'bout it, why should I? You spent the last few months lyin' to Angel, makin' it impossible for him to get back to Cordelia, and now he doesn't even know he has another son. Are ya happy you messed things up so much?"

"Cordelia doesn't deserve Angel." Buffy said back.

"That's where you're wrong. Cordelia isn't the girl you remember, and trust me, she deserves Angel." Doyle shot back.

"Well, Angel is gone now." Buffy remarked. "So no one gets him. All that's left is a demon."

"A demon you're runnin' from." Doyle added.

"He will come get me eventually." Buffy said.

"I hope…" Doyle mumbled under his breath, but Buffy heard him.

Before Buffy could shoot something back, however, her and Doyle were no longer in the hotel room but rather the same white abyss they had been in the last time they had been called by the PTB.

"Not again…" Doyle sighed.

"Silence!" The First Power bellowed.

"Well, yes sir!" Doyle mockingly saluted the voice.

"Do not get wise, dead one." The Second Power warned.

"You are not the one being questioned." The Third Power added.

"Well, that's a relief." Doyle said.

"Slayer!" The Second voice roared.

"What?" Buffy put a hand on her hip, indicating that yelling at her would get the Powers nowhere.

"You cannot abandon what you have given your word to do." The Third Power told her.

"Angel is gone." Buffy knew what the Powers were talking about. "Angelus is back, and no, I am not going to sit around here and wait for him to kill me."

"You will finish what you have already committed to." The First Power ordered.

"You can't order me around like this." Buffy started.

"But we can." The Second Power said.

"And we will." The Third Power added.

"Angel's soul shall be saved, even if your neck is not." The Second Power said.

"What?" Buffy was astonished. Did they just say Angel would be saved over her?

"A slayer is expendable." The Third Power said.

"Replaceable." The Second Power added.

"Our champion is not." The First Power finished.

Doyle grinned as he watched the expressions fly across Buffy's face as the Powers deemed her less important than Angel. Doyle knew the Slayer did not like to hear that.

"Restore the soul." The First Power's voice broke Doyle's thoughts apart.

"And save the champion." The Second Power said.

"He will gain his reward if he is brought back." The Third Power finished.

"You mean he'll get to back to L.A.?" Doyle liked what he was hearing. "Back to Cordelia and his sons?"

"Yes." The First Power said.

"But he must be saved first." The Third Power finished.

Before Buffy and Doyle knew it, they were both standing back in the hotel room, staring blankly at each other. Doyle made the first move.

"Well…" Doyle moved to the door. "Time to go save Angel."

Buffy said nothing, angry she had been ordered to do something she did not want to and even more angry that there was a chance Cordelia would get Angel back. Still, the Slayer did as she had been instructed and followed Doyle out of the room.

Cordelia gently moved Liam to his small basinet that sat in the corner of her bedroom. It was time for his as well as Connor's bedtime, but the infant did not seem like he was about to argue. Instead, Liam curled his little fist into balls and closed his eyes, embracing the sleep.

Cordelia took in the image of Liam, lying there, safe and sound. He was a miniature version of his father, Cordelia could already tell. She gently stroked the baby's cheek, excite that there was a chance that Liam would get to meet his father sometime in the near future, if her vision was at all correct.

A tough on her sweatpants pulled Cordelia from her thoughts as she looked down at her leg to see Connor smiling up at her.

"Mommy?" Connor's eyes seem to plead with Cordelia's before he even made his request.

"Yeah?" Cordelia whispered back, indicating to Connor that she did not want Liam to be woken up.

"No bed yet." Connor shook his head, looking up hopefully at Cordelia. "I no tired yet."

"Well…" Cordelia took Connor by the hand and led him out of the room. "Too bad, buddy, because it is way past your bedtime."

"But Mommmmmy." Connor seemed to jump up and down, although his feet did not actually leave the ground.

"No buts, mister." Cordelia scooped Connor up before he could argue anymore and placed him down in his bed. He was out of the crib, since he was a "big boy" now, and Gunn had gone out and bought him a racecar bed.

Cordelia tucked Connor in and sat down on the side of his bed, contemplating if she was going to ask her next question.

Connor was smart though, noticing Cordelia was struggling with something. "What?" He asked, simply.

Cordelia took a deep breath, turning to face Connor directly, tucking her one leg under the other. "Connor, what would you think if your Daddy came back?"

Connor was silent for a minute, looking down at his hands, and Cordelia thought that she had maybe asked him too complex of a question. After all, he was only going to be two in a few weeks, but Connor surprised her. He was just as smart as his father had ever been.

"Don't know." Connor shrugged. "Don't know him."

Cordelia nodded, understanding Connor. He couldn't remember Angel; he had been so young when Angel left.

"Well, get some sleep, sweetie." Cordelia leaned down, kissing Connor on the cheek. "I love you." She stood.

"Love you." Connor repeated after her as she left his bedroom.

Cordelia then made her way back down into the kitchen. She still had to clean up the mess from dinner, and the only time she had to do that was when she got the boys to bed. She moved around the kitchen quickly, her thoughts all on Angel and her sons.

She wondered how she would explain Liam to Angel after all of this. After all, she had let Angel believe she was carrying the Groosalugg's child. Still, she was sure, in the long run, Angel would understand. That's not what she was worried about. Her vision was what worried her. The grin Angel had given her in the vision as he looked down at Liam, it was a chilling grin. It just didn't feel right to Cordelia, and she didn't know why.

Angel could feel his wrists going numb as the cuffs dug into them. He had been on the table for close to two hours now, and it seemed that Roger was only almost finished preparing to remove his soul now. Angel looked down the end of the table to see Lilah sitting in a chair, seemingly bored our of her mind. Angel couldn't blame her; even he was a little bored at this point. He just wanted it all to be over with.

"Okay." Roger spoke up.

"Okay?" Lilah perked up. "Okay as in…we are ready to get rid of Angel and bring back Angelus?"

Roger nodded.

"Thank God…" Lilah sighed.

"Trust me…God wants no credit in this." Angel warned from his spot on the table.

"Just shut up." Lilah told him with a smirk.

Angel had nothing to say to her. It didn't matter anyway. He knew, in a few minutes, Angel wouldn't even exist anymore. A monster would take his place.

"Now, Angel…" Roger stood at the head of the table, placing his hands on Angel's temples. "This will more than likely hurt, but after a few minutes it won't matter."

Angel just swallowed hard. He already knew what it felt like to have his soul ripped from his body, so he knew Roger was right about one thing. It would hurt. It would hurt like hell.

"Any last words?" Lilah smirked.

Angel glanced over at her, no emotion in his black eyes. "Go to hell."

"You first." Lilah shot back.

Before Angel could say anything else, Roger began reciting some words and Angel could almost instantly feel his soul being torn from his body. He closed his eyes, trying to focus on anything but the pain, but all he could think about was one thing. His eyes flung open and he screamed the name that meant the world to him. "Cordelia!"

Then Angel's eyes closed, and Roger's words were finished. Lilah glanced over at Roger.

"Is it done?" Lilah asked.

Then Angel's eyes flew open, although they were no longer Angel's eyes. Lilah could see it almost instantly. They were not the eyes of a champion; they were the eyes of a beast. Then Angelus let out a little laugh, and it chilled Lilah to the bone.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 24**

Angelus grinned devilishly up at Lilah from his spot on the table. He was back, and he was more than happy about it. "Well, this is nice."

"We've been waiting for you, Angelus." Lilah told the vampire.

"Yeah?" Angelus grinned wider. "Well, why don't you let me give you a big hug for letting soul boy release me."

Lilah snorted at this. Did she look that stupid? "Yeah right. I'm not even going to let you think about being let out of those cuffs unless you are heavily sedated."

Angel nodded. "That's too bad." And with two swift jerks, he had popped both cuffs off his wrists and jumped up to his feet. "Because now I'm going to have to kill you for being so rude."

Lilah was in shock that Angelus had broken out of the cuffs so easily. She knew she should have had them reinforced. "Damn it…" She backed away from Angelus.

"Now…" Angel took a step toward Lilah, but then looked back at Roger. "The question is, who do I kill first?" He looked back at Lilah. "The bitch of a lawyer or…" He turned to Roger. "The guy who took hours to release me?"

"We can negotiate something here." Lilah offered. "The firm is pleased to have you as a partner…"

"Sorry, sweetie." Angel smirked. "Group work was never one of my strong points. I prefer to do things on my own."

As Angel moved toward Lilah, Roger grabbed a tray off of the counter and ran full force at Angelus, smacking the vampire in the back of the head with it.

Angelus turned to Roger, his game face on. "Now that hurt!" He moved toward the frightened man. "But you did make my decision easier. I am just gonna snap your next first…then I'll work on Lilah."

"Like hell." Lilah said, darting out of the room.

Angelus watched the lawyer run, but then just shrugged, turning back to Roger with a grin on his face. "I'll catch up with her later."

"I…please…" Roger seemed to plea for his life.

"P…p..p…please!" Angelus mimicked. "Please what? Please don't snap your next?" Angelus sighed, putting a hand on Roger's shoulder as if they were best friends. "Don't worry, I'm not going to snap your neck."

"You're not?" Roger seemed relieved.

"No." Angel stood straight up. "I'm going to torture you instead!" He pulled a scrapple off the table and rammed Roger in the stomach with it, causing the man to fall to the ground, holding his wound.

"Come on, you can't go down that easy!" Angelus pulled Roger up by the collar, dangling the wounded man in front of him as he showed off his glistening fangs. "I want to have a little fun." He grinned wider at Roger, knowing that he was going to thoroughly enjoy torturing his first victim since Buffy had sent him to hell.

Doyle and Buffy made their way up to the Dublin branch of Wolfram and Hart. Neither had spoken much since the Powers had told them what they had to do, but Doyle didn't really mind; he had not been a fan of Buffy or her voice anyway. As they approached the building, however, Buffy spoke up.

"So we can't just barge in there." Buffy said.

"Really? I thought that worked last time." Doyle said sarcastically.

Buffy just glared at Doyle. "Let's just think of a way in there without getting killed and without letting Angelus massacre the place."

"You really think they would be dumb enough to let him just roam in there?" Doyle questioned. "They are a successful law firm for a reason. Evil, yeah, but still a success."

"Trust me. They don't know what they are dealing with. They don't know Angelus." Buffy told him.

"Let's just do this." Doyle told her, taking a step toward the building.

"What did I just say about walking in there? That it was a bad idea." Buffy reminded him.

"Yeah? We'll we don't have a whole lot of time to think of a better plan, so let's just go." Doyle opened the door to the law firm, ready to just march in past the secure guard, taking a few of them down if he needed to, except that he didn't need to. The lobby of the building was empty.

"Well, this is a _great_ sign." Buffy said, stepping deeper into the building.

Doyle sniffed the air, glad that the Powers had given him his demon powers back when they had made him corporal for this one particular job. He could smell it instantly, the scent, it was one you never forgot. "Blood."

"What?" Buffy looked back at Doyle.

"I smell blood." Doyle sniffed the air again, moving toward the front desk. He moved to see behind the desk, and where the stench of blood was reeking from. On the floor behind the desk he found a dead security guard. "Crap."

"What?" Buffy moved to stand next to Doyle.

"We're too late." Doyle said, kneeling down by the dead guard.

"No." Buffy shook her head, not wanting to believe it. "Just because he is dead, doesn't mean it was Angelus. This is an evil law firm, it could have been something else."

Doyle moved the dead guards head to reveal to puncture wounds on the neck. He then looked back up at Buffy. "Do you really believe that?"

Buffy just stood there, unable to answer, not that it mattered much, because another familiar voice rang over her shoulder.

"Yeah, Slayer, who else would you expect to take down a place this size and still be able to walk outta here?" Angelus taunted Buffy from his perch on a small ledge above a large window.

Buffy turned, looking up to see Angelus grinning down at her from his spot. She couldn't help the chill that ran down her spin. He was back, and he was in front of her. "You bastard."

Angelus quickly jumped from the ledge, landing on his feet and standing up straight, a few feet from Buffy and Doyle. "Is that how you greet an old friend? I mean, you're not even going to ask me how hell was? I am still a little pissed about you sending me all by my lonesome. I would have loved some company."

"I am sure you enjoyed it anyway." Buffy shot back.

"Yeah." Angelus shrugged, quickly moved a little closer to Buffy before she could even react. "But I would have loved to share it with you." He grinned devilishly, looking her up and down. "Especially now since you seemed to have filled out a little. I mean those curves!" He licked his lips. "You finally got some hips."

"You're disgusting." Buffy told him.

"And you're a bitch." Angelus shot back, before shifting his attention to Doyle. "And you seem to be the bitches, bitch. What? Even in death those lovely Powers That Be won't let you rest?"

"I came back to save Angel." Doyle told him.

"Well that was just a waste of damn time then because I am back, and I am going nowhere." Angelus smiled.

"That's what you think." Buffy lunged at the vampire.

Angelus' reactions were better than Buffy's though, and he grabbed her, twisting her around so he had her in a headlock. "You're moving a little slower than usual, Slayer."

"Let her go." Doyle stepped toward Angelus.

Angelus stepped back, however, yanking Buffy with him. "What are you going to do about it? Come save her? Or just kiss her and screw her over like you did with Cordelia?"

"I didn't…" Doyle started.

"You didn't what? Practically kill her? I'm pretty sure her pretty little head almost exploded about a year ago. Don't you recall?" Angelus taunted as he yanked harder on Buffy.

"You shut up about her." Doyle shot back.

"I would…"Angelus rolled his eyes. "Thing is that bitch never shuts up. All Cordelia does is yack-yack-yack. Talk about a big mouth. Sometimes I wanted to just stake Angel so neither of us had to listen to her."

"She is a good person." Doyle defended Cordelia.

Angelus shrugged. "Maybe, I haven't been around her in a while." He then smiled as if he had just gotten a great idea. "Hey, here is a plan. Maybe I'll go visit her? You think she would like that?"

Before Doyle could answer Angelus, he had thrown Buffy back at the ex-seer, knocking both Doyle and Buffy to the ground as he took off out the front door.

"Damn it!" Buffy got to her feet as fast as she could, but it was too late. Angelus was already gone.

"Now what?" Doyle asked.

"Now we go and stop him before he causes anymore damage." Buffy said.

"Well, at least we know where he is goin'." Doyle said. "The airport is the only way he is goin' to get back to L.A."

Buffy nodded, not saying another word as she quickly made her way out of Wolfram and Hart and onto the streets of Dublin with Doyle a few steps behind her. She was on a mission now, and that was to make sure Angelus could not harm anymore people. This time, however, she felt it was less personal because she was not the one who had unleashed the beast. She was not responsible for the fact that Angelus was walking the earth, and that, she thought, would make it easier for her to finish him off if she had to.

Cordelia was grateful that she had Dennis in her apartment. He had been keeping Connor busy, playing with toy cars in the living room while Cordelia cleaned up the kitchen. Liam had gone down for a nap, and this was really the only time Cordelia had to catch up on cleaning. When Liam woke up he would be hungry.

She moved quickly and gracefully around her kitchen, cleaning all of the counters in a few quick wipes. It had been a few days since her vision of Angel's return and now all she could do was sit and wait for the vampire she loved to return.

"Mommy!" Connor made his way into the kitchen, an angry look on the toddler's face.

"Yeah sweetie?" Cordelia turned to her son.

"Dennis broked it." Connor held up one of his toy cars to show the back wheel had come off.

Cordelia knelt down so she was eye level with Connor. "Dennis broke it?"

Connor nodded.

"Are you sure?" Cordelia questioned, looking at the broken toy.

Connor sighed after a moment, his eyes looking down at his toy. He looked exactly like Angel when he was guilty of something. "Maybe. I didn't breaked it. It fell off."

"Ohh." Cordelia nodded. "But Dennis didn't break it either, right?"

"Yeah." Connor sighed.

"So why did you tell me he did?" Cordelia questioned. She knew it was about that time when Connor started learning basic life lessons about morals and virtues. Next week he would be two years old.

Connor shrugged.

"Connor, you know better than to lie to Mommy. You shouldn't get Dennis in trouble for something he didn't do, because if you do that no one will believe you." She lifted Connor's chin so he had to look he in the eye. "Do you understand me?"

"Yeah…" Connor nodded slowly.

"Okay, so what do you say to Dennis?" Cordelia asked.

Connor looked up at the empty air above his head, knowing Dennis was somewhere in it. He was extremely advanced for his age, Cordelia credited it to the fact that Angel had been so good with him when he was much younger. "Sorry Dennis."

"Good boy." Cordelia pulled Connor in for a quick kiss, and then looked down at his truck. "Now let me see if I can fix this, okay?"

Connor nodded, but before he could even say anything, Liam's cries filled the apartment.

Cordelia sighed, standing up. Liam was awake and he would be hungry. She looked down at the toy truck in her hand and then at Connor. "I will try to fix this later, okay Connor? I need to go get Liam now."

"It 'kay, Mommy." Connor snatched the toy from Cordelia's hand. "Liam need you."

Cordelia smiled gently down at Connor. He really was a sweetheart, just like his father. She gave the child her hand. "Come with me to get your brother?"

Connor nodded and let Cordelia lead him down the hall to Liam's crib where she grabbed the infant and pulled him up close to her. Once Liam was nestled close to Cordelia he immediately stopped crying.

"Someone wanted to get picked up, huh?" Cordelia cooed at Liam.

Liam gently seemed to smile at Cordelia before banging his tiny fist against Cordelia's breast.

"I guess that means you're hungry huh?" Cordelia laughed at her baby before moving to her bedroom with Connor in tow.

Once in her bedroom, Cordelia sat up on her bed, nursing Liam, and Connor climbed up next to her, looking at his broken truck, and seeming determined to try and get the wheel to go back on all by himself. Cordelia glanced back between Connor and Liam, noting just how similar they were starting to look. You could tell they were brothers. The only difference was that Connor had bright blue eyes, which he must have gotten from Darla, and Liam had dark eyes just like Angel. Liam also had dark hair, while Connors was still blonde. Either way, Cordelia decided, they definitely looked they brothers.

Angelus grinned as he made his way out of one of the many allies in Dublin. He had been released by Wolfram and Hart a few days ago and had been wreaking havoc on the city in Ireland ever since. He knew Buffy and Doyle had been up to their necks in dead bodies, they were always a step behind him, and that was how the vampire liked it; but he was growing bored.

It wasn't that he hadn't had a ball running around Ireland, sucking all of the beautiful girls that crossed his path dry, he just felt like he was over Ireland. He had lived there forever, he had been turned into a vampire there, and he needed to move on. Plus, he wasn't sure how much longer Buffy would try to clean up after him before she just came after him.

As Angelus walked down the dark streets of busy Dublin, he decided he knew where he wanted to go. He maneuvered through the city as if he had done it all of his life, and ended up where he needed to be a few minutes later. He looked up at the Dublin Airport entrance and smiled.

"Can I help ya, son?" The man at the front door of the airport asked. He seemed to be taking bags as the passengers from the cars unloaded, although at this hour, Angelus was the only one besides the man outside of the airport.

"Maybe." Angelus said, turning to the man in full vampire visage.

Before the man could react, Angelus grabbed him, sinking his teeth into the man's neck and sucking every last drop of blood out of him. When he was done with the man, Angelus let his lifeless body slip from his grasp. He then made his way into the airport and towards the ticket counter.

The woman working the ticket counter looked up as Angelus slammed a small wade of bills on the counter.

"What can I do for you, sir?" The woman asked, her dark hair gently gracing her shoulders.

"I need a ticket. One way." Angelus told her. "To Los Angeles."

The woman nodded, moving toward the computer that sat at the desk in front of her and scanning through the flights, looking up the ticket Angelus had requested, as the killer vampire stood there, looking like any other normal human being, and that's what made him so dangerous, he had the face of a champion.

Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne got out of Gunn's truck in front of Cordelia's apartment complex. It was a beautiful day out and they decided to go check in on Cordelia and the boys, maybe take them out and give Cordelia a little break.

Fred mad her way up to the front door, knocking and waiting for an answer. After a few minutes, they heard Cordelia's voice on the other side of the door.

"Who is it?" Cordelia called out.

"It's us, Cordy." Fred answered.

Then the door swung open and Cordelia stood there, holding Liam while Connor ran between her legs, lunging at Gunn.

Gunn scooped the toddler up, hugging him. "How are you, little man?"

"You come to play with me?" Connor seemed excited.

"We did." Gunn laughed.

"Come on in, guys." Cordelia stood aside, allowing Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne to enter her apartment.

"Well, this place looks good." Lorne looked around, noticing Cordelia's apartment was in great shape, and extremely clean. "I would never have guessed two little boys lived here."

"Dennis helps with the cleaning." Cordelia admitted as she bounced Liam in her arms.

"Well, you know…if you wanted." Wesley started. "We could help you out…if you moved back into the hotel…"

"Wes…" Cordelia seemed to warn him. "Don't even go there with me. I am fine here, with the boys."

"Just a thought." Wesley said.

"Well, thanks…but no thanks." Cordelia smiled as she took a seat on her couch with Liam. Fred sat next to her as Gunn laid down on the floor to play blocks with Connor. Wesley and Lorne made themselves comfortable against the wall.

"So how is everything going?" Fred asked.

"Good." Cordelia said honestly. Everything was going good with her and her children, and things would even be going better once Angel got back. Cordelia contemplated telling the group about her vision of Angel, but decided against it, knowing that there was a chance they wouldn't believe her anyway.

"Well, that's good." Fred smiled back.

"So, do you think you can come back to work soon?" Wesley asked.

Cordelia seem oddly struck by the question. She had never actually thought about going back to work anytime soon. She knew she would eventually, but she didn't think it would be soon. "I…uh…well the boys…" She motioned to Liam who wrapped his little hand around her small finger.

"You can bring them to the office." Wesley said. "Like you used to with Connor, it's no big deal."

"Uh…yeah, sure." Cordelia nodded. "I'll be in next week."

"Good." Wesley smiled.

"Yeah, we miss you around the office, girl." Gunn told her.

Cordelia smiled. "I miss the office."

Just then Liam started to cry.

"Well, I think that's our cue to get out of here." Lorne said over Liam's screams.

Cordelia laughed. "He's just hungry."

"Still, we will get out of your way." Fred stood. "See you next week?"

Cordelia nodded from her spot on the couch as she began to pull her shirt up to nurse Liam. "Thanks for stopping by."

"Sure thing." Gunn told her, patting Connor on the head. "Bye little guy."

"Bye!" Connor waved as Gunn, Wesley, Lorne, and Fred exited the apartment. Once they were gone, Connor made his way over to Cordelia, climbing up next to her.

"What's up?" Cordelia asked Connor as she nursed Liam.

"You play with me?" Connor asked.

"After I feed Liam, okay?" Cordelia asked.

Connor nodded sadly. He understood his mother needed to take care of his baby brother, but he just wanted someone to play with.

Cordelia felt bad. She loved being there for Liam and Connor, but as Connor got older she was starting to realize it was getting harder to be everything for Connor and Liam. She could not wait until Angel got back and he could help her raises his sons.

Doyle and Buffy had been chasing Angelus around Ireland for the past few were days and were just about going crazy when they found yet another one of his victim's bodies in an ally or in the back of a bar. They were always one step behind the killer vampire.

"We can't keep this up." Doyle said after they left the crime scene of yet another one of Angel's fatalities.

"What do you suggest we do then?" Buffy asked. "It doesn't matter how hard we try, we can never keep up with him. He makes a move before it even crossed our mind."

Doyle nodded. That was true. "Still, we know where he is headed ultimately. We need to warn them…we need to call Cordelia and…"

"What makes you so damn sure its Cordelia that he is after?" Buffy snapped. She couldn't help it, even now she was jealous that Angelus would prefer Cordelia as prey over her.

"We're ye not present a few days ago when we found Angelus in Wolfram and Hart and he practically ripped ya throat out?" Doyle questioned. "I mean, I'm pretty sure he said he was gonna go visit Cordelia. I don't know what that means to you but to me it means he is gonna go after her."

"He could change his mind." Buffy said, almost hopefully.

"Or she could be in a lot of danger." Doyle said.

"Big deal…" Buffy mumbled.

"Look…" Doyle grabbed her by the shoulder so she had to face him. "If ya aren't gonna help for Cordelia's sake do it for Angel's sons. They are in a lot of danger too right now."

Buffy thought for a minute and then shook her head. "I don't care what he said at Wolfram and Hart. He isn't going back to L.A."

"Then where the hell is he goin'?" Doyle threw his arms out. Buffy was impossible.

"He's going back to Sunnydale." Buffy began walking down the street again. "Trust me."

Doyle caught up with her. "Why the hell would he do that?"

"Because!" Buffy snapped. "Because Angelus hated me and my friends…"

"Angelus hates everyone." Doyle said simply.

Buffy shook her head. "He would want us dead. We matter more then those people in Los Angeles to Angel."

Doyle had to laugh at that. "Do you honestly believe that?"

Buffy seemed aggravated by Doyle as she stomped away. She didn't get very far, however, because as she continued to stomp she seemed to stomp right into the same white abyss she and Doyle had met the Power That Be in before. She looked around to see Doyle a few feet away from her.

"Did ya notice every time we fight we end up here?" Doyle questioned.

Buffy went to answer but was cut off by the Powers.

"Silence!" The First Power bellowed.

"We have called you here for a specific reason." The Third Power said.

"A specific task." The Second Power finished.

"You have failed." The First Power accused.

"The demon is free." The Second Power added.

"It's not like we begged them to get rid of Angel's soul." Doyle argued.

"But it is done." The Third Power said.

"The Beast is free." The First Power referred to Angelus.

"And now it must be stopped." The Second Power finished.

"How?" Buffy asked.

"Track it, dispose of it." The Third Power said.

"I can't kill Angel." Buffy said instantly.

"Then do not." The Second Power said.

"We only ask you dispose of the evil, not our champion." The First Power said.

"But how…" Buffy was confused. "Angelus and Angel are like wrapped up together. I can't kill one without killing the other."

"That is untrue." The Second Power said.

"You will find the answers you need when you reach the demon." The Third Power said.

"But where?" Buffy asked. "How do I know where to look?"

"The demon has chased those who the champion loves." The Second Power said.

"He has gone to Los Angeles." The First Power added.

"I told ya!" Doyle threw back in Buffy's face. "I told ya he would go after Cordelia!"

Buffy shrugged. She did not like being wrong, especially when Doyle was right.

"We need to warn them." Doyle spoke of the gang in L.A.

"The Slayer needs to." The First Power said.

"What?" Doyle was now the confused one.

"You're time is up, dead one." The Second Power said.

"You have done what you have been called to do." The Third Power said.

"You watched over the champion." The First Power said.

"You tried to save him." The Third Power added.

"But this is where your journey ends." The Second Power said.

"What? No!" Doyle protested. "I need to save Angel!"

"It is all in the Slayer's hands now." The First Power told him.

"But! I…" Doyle was not ready to leave. This was the first time, since his death, he had felt like he had a purpose.

"You have done your deeds. Now you must watch from afar." The Third Power said.

"I want to help him…" Doyle said.

"You did." The First Power said.

"And the Champion knows." The Second Power added.

"But now, the Slayer must complete this mission." The Third Power said.

"It is her destiny." The First Power said.

"What if I don't want it to be?" Buffy asked. This was all becoming a lot of pressure.

"Then the world will perish." The Second Power told her.

"The Champion is needed to keep balance." The Third Power added.

"Oh." Buffy said, dumbfounded. "Well…then I guess I need to catch up to Angelus."

"Not without me." Doyle added.

"Dead one!" The First Power warned Doyle. "You're mission is over."

"But what if she doesn't do what she is supposed to?" Doyle pointed at Buffy. "She hates Cordelia as it is."

"She will protect the seer because she knows it is right, regardless of her personal feelings." The First Power spoke of Buffy.

"But…I…" Doyle started.

Before Doyle could finish his argument, Buffy realized she was no longer in the white abyss. Instead, she was now standing on the street she and Doyle had just been on, although now she was alone. She knew now that Doyle was really not going to be there to help her. She needed to save Angel on her own and, no matter how much it killed her, she needed to go to Los Angeles to protect Cordelia and Angel's children; because like the Power had said, Buffy knew that keeping Cordelia and Angel's sons safe was the right thing to do.

Angelus gradually made his way off the plane, liking his fingers of the blood that belonged to the two plane stewardess he had just snacked on. The rest of the people on the plane were still in their seats, in shock at what they had just seen Angelus do. He smiled to himself, knowing he had scared the crap out of each person on that flight.

As he made his way through LAX his thoughts drifted toward where he was headed; he was going to Cordelia's apartment. He was sure she would still be there, with Connor and her knew child by the Groosalugg. Angelus contemplated what he would do once he got to Cordelia's apartment.

On one hand, he wanted to torture the crap out of her because she had meant so much to Angel. Even now, as he thought of Cordelia, he could feel Angel, who was suppressed underneath the darkness that was Angelus, try and come forward and love Cordelia. Cordelia meant more to Angel then Buffy ever had, Angelus realized. That was enough to make Angelus want to see her scream

On the other hand, Cordelia had taken on the task of raising Connor, who was as much Angelus' son as he was Angel's. Angelus could not hurt Connor, nor would he want to. Not only was Connor part of him, but he was part of Darla, and Angelus was still not over her. No matter how long he had been around, Angelus still pinned for his sire. He missed her, and Connor shared a part of her.

"I could always turn him." Angelus thought. Turning Connor would make his son immortal and just as vicious as he was. However, Angelus knew he couldn't do that until Connor grew a little. He was not about to keep a toddler around for eternity.

"Guess I'll have to keep Cordelia around a little longer." Angelus said to himself as he exited LAX and entered the dark night of Los Angeles. He knew he could not kill Cordelia right away, but he could make her existence a miserable one until he was done playing games with her and done using her. He decided that plan actually sounded enjoyable to him.


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 25**

Cordelia balanced Liam in one arm as she moved gracefully around her living room, gathering up the trail of new toys Connor had left behind him. His two year old birthday had just passed, and Gunn and Wesley had been sure to make it a memorable one, buying Connor any new toy the toddler had asked for. The birthday had been hard on Cordelia, knowing it was the second one Angel had missed in regards to Connor. She hoped it would be the last one the vampire with a soul missed.

Connor was now in the kitchen, eating his lunch, and Cordelia took the time to clean up after him. Usually, she would ask him to do it and Connor would listen, but Cordelia felt bad nagging the toddler when she knew she was not giving him as much time as she would have liked to. Plus, he had been a good boy at the office that morning when she had gone in to do a little paperwork for Wesley. She knew she needed to get back into the swing of things with work, but being at the hotel for two hours with both of her son's was more than enough for Cordelia at that point.

"Mom!" Connor called from the kitchen.

"Yeah, sweetie?" Cordelia asked, tossing one of Connor's new trucks into a pile with a few others.

"I done!" Connor said.

Cordelia moved into the kitchen, placing Liam in his baby carrier that was on the kitchen table. Liam gurgled a little, not liking that he was now lacking Cordelia's body heat.

"One second." Connor told Liam. "Mommy need get me down."

Cordelia smiled at Connor as she picked him up out of his high chair, placing him on the floor, and then moving back to Liam and lifting the one-month old up.

"Mom? Go park later?" Connor asked.

"Maybe, honey." Cordelia looked outside, noticing it was a nice day out. A chill went down her spin as she glanced out her window, however. She felt like someone was watching her. She moved toward the window to get a better look, but her attention was drawn away from her window as Liam grabbed onto her necklace.

"What's up, baby?" Cordelia cooed at Liam.

Liam smiled, and it was apparent in that smile that he was Angel's son. The corners of his lips turned up in the same way Angel's had when he was really smiling.

"Do you wanna go to the park with your big brother? Huh?" Cordelia asked Liam in a baby voice.

"Yes!" Connor jumped up, excited.

Cordelia laughed. She owned it to Connor to do something special with him, and if he wanted to go to the park then she would take him. "Okay, let's just get Liam ready."

"'Kay, Mommy." Connor seemed excited as he took off to find his sneakers.

Cordelia smiled gently as she watched Connor take off to his room. She then smiled down at Liam, moving to get his diaper bag and jacket incase he got cold. She still, however, couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her and her boys, yet she was not sure if that necessary panicked her. What struck her even more oddly, was that she actually felt comfortable with that feeling. Maybe, deep down, that was because she was counting on Angel being the one watching her.

Cordelia wasn't half wrong. Someone was watching her, but it wasn't Angel. Although, the person stalking in the shadows around Cordelia's apartment did look like Angel. Angelus stood outside the window of Cordelia's apartment, careful to avoid direct sunlight, watching her with Connor and what appeared to be an infant boy in her arms. He assumed that meant that she and Groo had a son, not that Groo knew of it. Angelus remembered Buffy telling Angel that Groo had left Cordelia long ago.

Angelus had been in L.A. for about a week now, but his presence had not really been felt yet. He had certainly added to the carnage of Los Angeles, and maybe even increased it a little, but not enough that anyone would suspect a vicious mastermind like himself was in the city. He did not want to draw any suspicion until he decided what to do with Cordelia.

Angelus watched Connor make his way back into the living room, shoes in hand, holding them up so Cordelia could put them on, which she did once she put her infant son into his carrier. Connor looked a lot like Darla, Angelus realized, but he also had hints of his father in him, which made Angelus proud.

Angelus watched Cordelia interact with Connor. She was gentle with him, and Angelus was confident Angel had made the right decision in leaving Connor with Cordelia. He also decided right there he would make sure Cordelia kept taking good care of Connor until his son was old enough to be turned, then Angelus would dispose of Cordelia and her other son, if he kept the infant alive that long. He was still unsure of what he wanted to do with the child he thought had been father by the Groosalugg. He still had no clue that Liam was Angel's, and in turn, his own son.

Buffy made her way off of her plane. She knew she was a few days behind Angelus, but she had needed to tie up loose ends in Dublin before heading back to Los Angeles, especially since Doyle was no longer going to be able to help her.

Buffy made her way out of the airport, and directly over to a payphone. She knew she needed to make one quick phone call before she went after Angelus. She dialed the familiar number and it rang a few times, but then a familiar voice answered.

"Hello?" Giles said into the phone.

"Giles?" Buffy spoke into the phone. "It's me…"

"Buffy? Lord! Where are you?" Giles seemed concerned, and almost a little angry. "Where have you been?"

Buffy knew Giles would be upset with her, but she could tell by the tone in his voice he was much more upset then she had anticipated. "I…I've been in Ireland…"

"Ireland? Buffy do you have any idea how crazy we have all gone looking for you? How worried we have all been?" Giles asked.

"I know, and I am sorry." Buffy apologized into the phone. "But I'm in Los Angeles now, and I found Angel."

"You what?" Giles seemed somewhat shocked. "You found him?"

"Well…yeah. In Ireland…" Buffy hesitated before saying the rest. "He…well…"

"Buffy?" Giles could tell, even over the phone something wasn't right. "What are you not telling me."

Buffy knew she couldn't tell Giles that Angelus was back. He sounded too worried as it was. "Nothing. Just don't worry about me. I have to sort a few things out and then I will be back in Sunnydale, okay?"

"Very well." Giles replied. He knew he would not be able to talk Buffy into coming back earlier then she wanted to. "Please keep in touch this time?"

"I will try my best." Buffy said. "Bye Giles." Before Giles could respond, Buffy hung the phone up and looked out at the city of L.A. She took a deep breath and plane her next move. She was not sure where to start looking for Angelus, but she knew where she wasn't going to start, and that was at the Hyperion Hotel. She did not want anyone to know she was in L.A. or that Angelus was there. She wanted to try and handle it on her own first, after all, she had dealt with Angelus before, she was sure she could do it now.

Cordelia pushed Connor on the swings while Liam hang off her chest in his baby carrier. To anyone walking passed the park, Cordelia looked like your average mother, taking care of her sons while their father was off at work for the day; but Cordelia knew she was much more than that, her life was so much more complex than that.

"Higher!" Connor squealed from the swing.

"If I push you much higher you'll fly off." Cordelia exaggerated, although Connor was swinging high for someone his age. Clearly he had Angel's fearless demeanor.

"Fine." Connor seemed to mumble.

Cordelia smiled at Connor's enthusiasm, but her smile faded as well as her pushes of the swing. She felt like someone's eyes were on her. Someone was watching her and her boys. She glanced around but noticed she, Connor, and Liam were the only people in the park besides another mother with her daughter.

"Mom! Why you stop?" Connor seemed annoyed as he turned to face Cordelia.

Cordelia realized she had stopped pushing Connor's swing completely now. "Sorry, sweetie. How about you play in the sandbox now? Mommy's arms are getting tired."

"Okay." Connor complied, jumping off the swing and hurrying to the sandbox a few feet away.

Cordelia followed Connor as she ran a hand over Liam's head as he still hung off the front of her in his baby sling. She sat down on the bench next to the sandbox and watched Connor.

"You play?" Connor asked Cordelia.

"I'm gonna take a break with Liam, okay?" Cordelia asked.

Connor nodded and continued back to work in the sandbox.

Cordelia smiled down at Connor and then kissed Liam softly on the head. The infant squirmed a little when Cordelia's lips hit his head, but then he settled back against her chest, his little fists seeming to rub his eyes.

"Are you tired, baby?" Cordelia cooed at Liam.

Liam just leaned his head farther into Cordelia's chest, seeming to answer the question.

"Connor, we're going to go soon, okay? Liam is tired." Cordelia said.

"Okay." Connor nodded.

Cordelia was glad Liam was tired. She still couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. She again glanced around the park but spotted no one that could be watching her. After a few more minutes of feeling uneasy, she stood. "Connor, ready?"

Connor nodded reluctantly and stood, grabbing Cordelia's hand and walking toward her jeep with her. He did not seem happy about leaving the park, and anyone who was watching could see it. Angelus noticed it immediately from the shadow of the building he was in. He had been watching Cordelia with Connor and Liam for awhile now, and had tracked them to the park.

"She is good with you, my boy." Angelus addressed Connor, but was really speaking out loud to himself more than anything. "Cordelia cares about you. I'll let her raise you into a man, then I'll bring you into my world."

And with that, Angelus' plan was settled. He knew exactly what he was going to do with Cordelia, Connor, and that new baby that he assumed Groo had fathered. He would kill the infant, no doubt, but he would let Cordelia raise Connor into a man, then he would turn his son into a vampire. He, of course, was going to let Cordelia know immediately what his plan was. He would not try to instill false hopes into her. The next time he saw her, he would let her know Angelus was back and she was going to do what he told her to.

Gunn shook his head as he entered the Hyperion Hotel, dropping his sword to the floor and making his way over to the couch which he threw himself on. He was frustrated, and that was evident to anyone who saw him.

Wesley entered the lobby shortly after Gunn, also seemingly frustrated. He picked up the sword Gunn had dropped and put it back in the closet, slamming the door hard.

The sound of the door brought Fred and Lorne out of the kitchen where they had been cleaning up after breakfast.

"Well you two look peachy." Lorne said sarcastically.

"We got nowhere." Gunn replied.

"What do you mean?" Fred asked. She knew that there had been a slight increase in death tolls associated with vampires in the past week or so, and she knew that Wesley and Gunn had decided to find out why, reaching out to all of their contacts. They had gone to meet with one this morning, clearly to no avail.

"No one knows why there have been more deaths, and no one can explain who is responsible for anything." Wesley said. That was because no one knew Angelus was back in town and that the notorious vampire was the reason for the slight increase in deaths in Los Angeles.

"For once the damn demons want to keep their mouths shut about what's going on." Gunn was angry. "Usually they can't wait to brag about this kind of crap."

"Well, maybe there is a reason they are keeping the noise down." Lorne suggested. "Maybe there is some sort of threat on their lives if they speak up."

"Who has that much power?" Gunn asked, and then added. "Besides Wolfram and Hart."

"Maybe they are it, then." Fred said. "Maybe they are the ones…"

"No. We already looked into it. Besides, Wolfram and Hart would not be using vampires to do their dirty work, they are much too sophisticated for that." Wesley said.

"What I don't get is why Cordy hasn't had a vision about it." Gunn said.

"Well, Cordelia's visions have been a little less frequent since…well you know…" Fred said uncomfortably.

"Since Angel left." Wesley said what Fred was thinking.

"Yeah." Fred nodded.

"Still, she has had some." Gunn did not want the conversation to lead to an awkward moment. "So why not about this?"

"Maybe it's not a big deal to the Powers." Fred suggested.

"Well, it should be." Gunn said.

"Maybe there isn't a huge difference in the deaths like we think." Lorne said. "Maybe that's why the Powers haven't sent Cordelia a vision."

"What do you mean?" Gunn asked.

"Maybe we are just falling behind." Lorne explained. "Maybe deaths are occurring at the same rate, but we just can't save as many lives. I mean, we have been struggling in that department since Angelcakes walked out."

"Well, let's hope that's not the case." Wesley said.

"Just a thought…" Lorne defended himself.

"Anyway, when is Cordelia coming in?" Wesley changed the subject.

Fred looked up at the clock on the wall. "She should have been here fifteen minutes ago."

"Cut her some slack. She will be here. She is just busy with the boys." Gunn immediately defended Cordelia, although no one was really attacking her.

"Still…" Wesley sighed, fixing his glasses, and deciding he was going to invest in contacts. The glasses were constantly getting in his way. "She needs to get back on schedule and show up when she is supposed to. Maybe I will talk to her."

"Maybe you should just give her a little more time." Gunn stood from his spot at the couch. "She deserves it. She is new at this mother-of-two thing."

"I am well aware, Gunn." Wesley said. "But she is going to be a mother-of-two for the rest of her life, so she needs to get back into the habits of working and being prompt."

Gunn nodded, he understood that, but he still did not want to piss Cordelia off, and he had a feeling that if Wesley talked to her that was exactly what would happen. "I'll talk to her when she gets here." Gunn offered.

Wesley nodded. That was fine by him. He was not really looking forward to talking to Cordelia about that anyway. He didn't want her to get angry, and he wasn't angry with her for not being at work on time. He understood it all, he just wanted to help her get back into a normal swing of things and he felt that the only way to do that was to get her back on her normal schedule.

Cordelia rushed around her living room, trying her best to gather all of Liam's things and through them in his diaper bag as she balanced the infant in her other arm. Connor was on the floor, trying his best to get his shoes on like Cordelia had asked them to. She was late for work; she was supposed to have been at the hotel a half hour ago and she knew when she did show up Wesley would not be pleased.

But, in her favor, it was not entirely her fault that they were running late. Connor and Liam had both been monsters to wake up that morning, and Cordelia assumed that was because of the prior afternoon which they had spent in the park. Her son's were both tired.

"Connor, do you have your shoes on yet, sweetie?" Cordelia asked as she finished packing Liam's diaper bag.

"No." Connor said, clearly still tired and therefore, a little grumpy. "Can't get untied." Connor help up his right shoe to show Cordelia the huge knot in it. He had managed to get his left one undone and onto his foot though.

"Okay, come here." Cordelia motioned for Connor to come to her as she placed Liam down in his carrier on the coffee table. The child squirmed a little and then let out a soft cry.

"Not now, Liam." Cordelia begged the nearly two-month-old. She couldn't take him crying right now, she was already stressed out enough.

Liam seemed to know already that it was not a good idea to test his mother. He immediately simmered down.

"Here." Connor handed Cordelia his shoe, which she quickly untied and out on his foot for him.

"There you go." Cordelia went to stand.

"Mom? You tie?" Connor asked.

"Right, sorry sweetie. I am just rushing." She knelt back down and tied up Connor shoe. She then stood, offering him her hand and pulling him off the ground. "Okay, are we ready to go now?"

Connor nodded. He was ready to go over to the hotel and play with Uncle Gunn. "Yup."

"Okay." Cordelia moved toward Liam and lifted the infant gently. "Come on, Liam. Let's go see your aunt and uncles." She cooed at the baby. "They will be so excited to see you."

Liam responded with a gurgle before burying his head in Cordelia's chest.

Cordelia slipped Liam's diaper bag over her shoulder and moved toward the door, turning to Connor as she opened it. "Come on, Connor."

Cordelia then turned around and walked right into someone's broad chest. She was confused for a moment but back up enough, ready to apologize to whoever she had just walked into that was at her front door.

"Sorry, I didn't…" Cordelia started but stopped immediately when she saw who was at her front door. She was in shock, she couldn't move; she wasn't even sure if she could breath.

"What's wrong, Cordelia? You look like you've seen a ghost." Angelus smirked from his spot at the door.

A smile broke across Cordelia's face as tears welled in her eyes. "Angel." She couldn't believe it. Her vision had come true. He was back; her Angel had come home, or so she thought.


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 26**

Cordelia continued to stare at the vampire in front of her. The vampire she thought had a soul, the vampire she thought she loved, she had no idea it was actually Angelus standing before her.

"Cordelia?" Angelus waved a hand in front of her face. He decided he was just going to break the news to her, let her know Angel was on a permanent vacation and that he was going to make sure she raised his son to his expectations, and that if she did all he asked he might not kill her in the end.

"I…I can't believe it's you." Cordelia was on the verge of tears. "I…missed you." She threw her free arm around him, trying not to crush Liam between them.

"I bet." Angelus smirked, knowing Cordelia still had no idea who he was. He gently pushed her off of him, knowing she thought he was Angel, and deciding he would play along with it for now, like a cat plays with a mouse before giving it the final swat with its paw.

"Angel…" Cordelia seemed to whisper, disregarding how he had not embraced her. She knew he was probably feeling a thousand different emotions right now, just like she was. "I have so much to tell you."

"Well, I have a lot to tell you too." Angelus told her.

"Right." Cordelia seemed to laugh. "I…"

Suddenly Cordelia felt a tug on her pants, she looked down to see Connor cowering behind her leg, looking suspiciously up at Angelus.

"Mom…who he?" Connor asked, eyeing Angelus up.

"Connor…oh…" Cordelia looked between Angelus and Connor, knowing Connor had no memory of his father besides what she had told him. She knelt down by the toddler. "Connor, remember when I told you about your Dad? And how I said he was going to come back some day?"

Connor nodded, still eyeing up Angelus. "Yeah."

"Well…" Cordelia looked up at Angelus, thinking it was Angel. 

"Well I am your Dad, _son_." Angelus gave a grin to Connor.

If Cordelia had not been in such a state of shock, she would have known that grin did not and never would belong to Angel, but she missed it.

"You?" Connor seemed to raise an eyebrow.

Cordelia nodded at Connor, the tears in her eyes were going to start flowing any second now. She finally had Angel back. Her family was back together.

"No waterworks, okay?" Angelus asked, smelling the salt from Cordelia's tears in the air. He moved passed her, patting Connor on the head and then making his way to her couch, putting his feet up on the coffee table. "Let's talk."

Cordelia nodded, her smile never leaving her face as she moved toward the couch, settling down on it next to Angelus, thinking he was Angel, and moving Liam so the infant rested comfortably against her chest. 

Connor soon took a seat next to Cordelia, but on her side opposite Angelus. He did not want to sit next to the strange man.

Cordelia looked over at Angelus, unsure of how she was going to tell him all she needed to. She needed to, first of all, explain Liam, and then she wanted to know where he had been, how he had known to come back, what had happened to Buffy. Most of all, she wanted to know if what she had been praying for since he had left was true. She wanted to know if he loved her. What she didn't know is that he couldn't answer that, because he was not Angel, he was the monster that had lived in the souled-vampire that Cordelia was in love with.

Buffy made her way back onto the bright streets of Los Angeles after yet another unsuccessful trip to a demon bar. She had been to approximately four bars like that since she had been in L.A., thinking someone in at least one of them would know of Angelus or where he was. So far she had been wrong though.

She walked a few blocks then turned down an alley, making her way to a door on the side of a beat up building. She was grateful for the fact that after she had sent Angel to hell she had moved to L.A. for the summer because she had learned all of the demon hangouts. 

She entered the door, descending a staircase with broken crates and bottles on either side. She entered a dimly lit bar that smelled of stale beer and blood. She was immediately approached by the bar tender, a small chubby man with bad teeth and greasy hair.

"Can I help you?" The bartender asked.

"I am looking for someone." Buffy did not look at the bartender, but instead over his shoulder.

"Well, I don't think you'll find your kind in her, missy." The bartender put an arm around Buffy, as if protecting her. He was a sleaze-ball.

"I'm looking for a vampire." Buffy shrugged the man's arm away.

The man seem thrown off a little that Buffy knew of vampires, but he recovered quickly. "Why?"

"Because, I need to see him." Buffy told the bartender.

"What's his name, baby?" A tall vampire with dark hair asked from the corner of the room.

"Angelus." Buffy said simply.

The vampire seemed startled by the name, and stood, walking towards Buffy. "Angelus is dead. A slayer…she killed him."

"She didn't kill him." Buffy corrected the vampire. "She sent him to hell, but he came back, with his soul."

"Angel." The vampire seemed to chuckle. "He's gone. Probably dead. Hasn't been in L.A. for about a year now."

"He's not dead." Buffy said simply. "He is just without his soul at the moment."

"How the hell would you know?" The vampire seemed to be getting pissed off at Buffy.

"Because, I met him." Buffy said.

"You met Angel." The vampire corrected.

"No. I met Angelus." Buffy repeated.

"Angelus would have killed you in a second if you had." The vampire seemed to chuckle.

"He knows better than to do that." Buffy realized that this bar was not going to be anymore help then her last in her search for Angelus. She turned to walk away.

"How the hell do you expect me to believe that the great Angelus let you walk away from him?" The vampire questioned Buffy's back.

Buffy turned to the vampire. "Because he knows I'd send him back to hell in a second if I had the chance." She then turned back, making her way up the stairs.

The vampire now realized who Buffy was. "Slayer!" He growled, running after her.

Buffy however, simply opened the door to the alleyway, exposing the vampire to the sunlight of the day and turning him to dust as she made her way back onto the streets of Los Angeles to continue her search for one of the most dangerous vampires in history. 

Gunn, Wesley, Fred, and Lorne all busied themselves around the hotel. Gunn and Wesley were looking into more vampire killings that had come up in the past few days, while Lorne and Fred were busy setting up appointments with clients that had called in last week with smaller problems. All four of them would take turns glancing up at the clock, each wondering the same thing.

Finally, Gunn spoke up. "She is like three hours late now. We should call her or go over there or something. Cordelia is never this late for anything."

"Maybe she forgot she had to come in?" Lorne offered.

Gunn raised an eyebrow at Lorne but said nothing.

"We will call her." Fred moved to the phone. "We aren't about to go barge in on her."

"Fine." Gunn nodded. That was good enough for him.

Fred dialed Cordelia's number and waiting for someone to answer the phone, half thinking herself that Cordelia was just so busy with Connor and Liam that she had forgotten to come in. When she got no answer, however, she hung up the phone slowly.

"No answer?" Wesley asked.

Fred shook her head. "No. But she could have just not been able to get to the phone."

"Or something else could have happened." Gunn grabbed his jacket that was on the back of his chair. "We need to go over there."

Wesley nodded, also not missing a beat, grabbing his car keys. "I'll drive."

"Slow down there, boys." Lorne said. "Maybe we should just wait a little longer, see if the princess comes in?"

"Why don't you want to go check on her?" Gunn accused Lorne.

"It's not that." Lorne said immediately. "I just don't want her to think we are smothering her. I don't want to push her away by being on her back so much."

"She is three hours late, she didn't call. That's not smothering." Gunn said.

After a moment Lorne nodded, Gunn was right. "Alright, let's go."

Gunn nodded, allowing Wesley to lead him, Fred, and Lorne out to his SUV. Gunn was hoping that Lorne and Fred were right, that Cordelia had forgotten to come into work, and was too busy with the boys to answer the phone. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that something bigger was going on.

Lilah sat in her office back in Los Angeles. It had been a few weeks since Angelus had escaped under her watch and the Senior Partners had not been extremely pleased about that. She, in turn, had begun creating a list of all the ways to get Angelus back under the firms power or to simply kill him. She knew she had to correct her mistake.

Gavin briskly made his way into her office, causing her to look up at the door, thinking she should start locking it. "Good afternoon, Lilah."

"What could you possibly want?" Lilah asked, sighing as she leaned back in her chair.

"To relay a message from the Senior Partners." Gavin told her.

"What are you? Their little gopher?" Lilah teased.

Gavin just gave her a small annoyed smile before continuing. "They want to let you know that you do not need to stress out over Angelus. They are disappointed in the fact that you completely lost him after they trusted you enough to bring him under our power, however they think he will still do enough damage in our favor."

"Meaning…" Lilah wanted more.

"Meaning they have strong reasons to believe he will kill the seer and his offspring before completely wiping out Angel Investigations anyway. They want to lay low for a little." Gavin told her.

"So that's it? We just let him roam around, killing whoever he wants?" Lilah asked.

"He's evil, he is playing our side of the board anyway." Gavin replied.

"Yeah, until he gets bored and comes after us." Lilah said, She had read about Angelus, researched him, she knew what a sadistic monster he could be. "Plus, how can we be sure he will even go after Angel Investigations?"

"Because those people are the only ones in this whole world who mattered to Angel." Gavin said. "The Senior Partners think that will be enough to make Angelus want to rip their throats out."

"We better hope so." Lilah said.

"Just be grateful the Senior Partners didn't have you killed for screwing this whole plan up." Gavin said, making his way to the door.

"Don't threaten me." Lilah told him simply. "You have no idea what I have sacrificed for the company. I was here long before you were and I will be here long after."

"We'll see about that." Gavin said, making his way out the door.

When the door slammed behind Gavin Lilah sunk back in her chair. Gavin really pissed her off, but she was grateful for the message he had just relayed to her. She could have sworn the Senior Partners were going to make her pay for losing Angelus, even though she had little control in the situation. She was just glad to know she was no longer being held accountable for the mistake.

Cordelia sat on the couch next to Angelus, thinking it was Angel as she absentmindedly bounced Liam in one arm while she wrapped the other one around Connor who was still eyeing Angelus up, unsure of what to think of the man who claimed to be his father.

"So…" Angelus turned to Cordelia with a wide grin. "What's all this stuff you need to tell me?"

"Where were you?" Cordelia asked in return. "Where have you been? We've been looking everywhere for you."

"I was…around." Angelus said, looking down at his hand as he made a fist and relaxed it.

"Buffy found you." Cordelia seemed to accuse more than ask.

Angelus looked over at Cordelia and could tell she was somewhat jealous. "Yeah. She did. That's why I came back. I couldn't stand being around her…all she does is nag and complain and whine…" Angelus clenched his jaw, talking about the slayer angered him. He eyed Cordelia up, wondering how fast he could rip her arm off, and then realize, for some reason, he didn't want to do that. He shook the feeling quickly.

"I thought you wouldn't come back." Cordelia looked down at Liam, realizing just how much he looked like Angel. She looked back up at the vampire next to her, who remained silent. She knew she had to tell him about Liam. "Angel…I…I have to tell you something."

"About?" Angelus asked.

"Well…" She looked down at Liam and smiled gently. "About this little guy."

Angelus smirked. "You mean the one that Groo left you with? What an ass…I mean…not even man enough to handle his mistakes."

Cordelia was caught off guard by the comment. "He…Liam is not a mistake." She defended.

"Liam?" Angelus raised an eyebrow at the name choice. "You named him after me? Well I mean…the human me?" Angelus was somewhat honored, but somewhat bitter as well. Liam had been a loser. Angelus was not proud of the human version of himself.

"I named him after his father." Cordelia looked Angelus in the eye, thinking it was Angel, and thinking he would understand.

"Groo's first name was Liam?" Angelus responded.

"No." Cordelia gave a small smile. "Angel…I…Do you remember the ballet? What we did?"

Angelus grinned. He remembered the ballet, he remembered all of it. He had lived through Angel as Angel had kissed and caressed Cordelia. He had been jealous of his souled-counterpart that night. "Oh, I remember."

"And then you remember, before you left? You knew I was pregnant?" Cordelia reminded him.

Angelus nodded. He remembered Angel sensing the child within Cordelia. "Yeah."

"Well, do the math." Cordelia told him. "And know this…I never slept with Groo. I have been with exactly one man…pire, in over three years."

Angelus was taken back for a second, he glanced up between Liam and Cordelia and Connor. He realized now, Connor and Liam did look quite a lot alike. "You mean…I…?"

"Liam is your son, Angel." Cordelia told him.

Angelus cringed as Cordelia called him Angel. He hated it, and he would have told her that, except for the fact that he was in shock. Liam was his offspring, just as Connor was. He and Cordelia had created a life. "How…"

Cordelia shrugged. "I don't know. All I know is that you and I have a son."

Angelus felt it, the bond, not just between him and Connor and Liam, but between himself and Cordelia. For some reason he didn't want to hurt any of them, instead he wanted to protect him. They were his now, all of them had been marked by him, whether through genetics or the bond of two lovers. Cordelia, Liam, and Connor were his now, forever, and no one would take them from him.

"Angel?" Cordelia broke Angelus' thoughts.

Angelus looked up at Cordelia. He couldn't tell her who he was, not now, she would never trust him, and never let him keep her safe, never let him keep her. "Yeah?"

"Do you want to hold your son?" Cordelia offered Liam to Angelus.

Angelus nodded numbly, taking Liam from Cordelia. The infant squirmed a little, and then settled across Angelus' broad chest. The more he looked at Liam, the more he felt the need to keep the infant, Connor, and Cordelia safe. He felt like Angel was clawing his way to the surface, like his soul was almost there, and Angelus hated the feeling, still he had the primal instincts of a vampire to protect his own.

"Mom?" Connor seemed curious about Angelus now, making his way into Cordelia's lap.

"Yeah, sweetie?" Cordelia pulled Connor close as she let a few tears make their way from her eye. Her family was finally back together. "He really my dad?" He pointed to Angelus.

Angelus looked over at Connor, realizing the toddler looked a lot like him and a little like Darla. "Yeah, Connor. I am." And he was. He was just as much Connor and Liam's father as Angel was.

Connor seemed to nod, leaning his head into Cordelia as he watched his father with Liam.

Cordelia too watched Angelus with their son, thinking it was Angel. There had been enough clues at the beginning of the conversation, the cold, rude comments, the casual gestures, the evil grins, that if Cordelia had been looking hard enough she would have known that it was not Angel sitting next to her. But she had missed them all, maybe because she was in shock, or maybe on purpose, because she wanted to believe more than anything that her Angel was back.

Buffy could not believe she had ended up there. It was the one place in all of Los Angeles that she did not want to go to, aside from maybe Cordelia's apartment. Yet, she knew it was probably the only place she could get the help she was looking for. Her bar hunting had, up until that point, been no help, and the Slayer was more than frustrated at this point.

Buffy sighed, making her way up to the Hyperion Hotel and opening the door after a moment of hesitation. "Hello?" She called out.

The hotel was empty and so quiet you could hear a pin drop. "Hello?" Buffy called out again.

Still no answer.

Buffy sighed. "Who the hell leaves their front door opened if they aren't home?" She asked out loud to the empty room. 

Buffy waited a few more minutes in the lobby of the hotel and then had had enough. She was not going to sit around waiting for Angel's friends to come back. Maybe, she thought, there was a reason that they were not there. Maybe she really was supposed to take care of Angelus on her own. At any rate, she decided to leave the hotel and go back to hunting Angelus down on the streets. She would probably find him fast anyway.

Cordelia sat in silence with Connor curled up in her lap as she watched Angelus gaze down at Liam, still thinking Angel was sitting next to her. At the moment, even someone who knew Angelus inside and out would not have been able to differentiate the monster from the souled-vampire. Angelus was so calm and careful with Liam, after all, it was his offspring.

A knock on the door shook Angelus and Cordelia from there thoughts.

"Who is that?" Angelus said quickly.

"Cordy? You in there?" Gunn's voice came from the other side of the door.

"It's everyone!" Cordelia turned to Angelus to see him glaring at the door. "Angel? Aren't you excited to see them?"

Angelus turned to Cordelia, realizing that she was in fact extremely attractive, even more so now that he knew she had been the mother to his son. He realized he needed to continue to play along and make Cordelia think he was Angel. "Yeah. Sure."

"Cordelia?" Fred's voice was heard this time.

"Come in." Cordelia shouted back, shifting Connor in her lap, knowing he was going to charge at Gunn the minute his uncle walked into the room. Gunn was one of the only one's who ever played with Connor.

Two seconds later the door flew open and Lorne, Fred, Wesley, and Gunn walked into the room, all stopping short when they saw who they thought was Angel sitting on the couch with Liam.

"Angel?" Wesley was the first to speak up, completely in shock.

"Yeah." Angelus said too tensely and too abruptly. He didn't sound like Angel and he knew it but he didn't care. He did not want the Fang Gang around, afraid one of them would catch on and expose him. He couldn't risk it.

"When did you…how…" Gunn was in shock as well.

"I just got here." Angelus said.

"Gunns!" Connor leapt up from Cordelia's lap, unable to hold back his excitement anymore. He ran over to Gunn. "My's Daddy's back!"

"I see that." Gunn said, patting Connor on the head.

Angelus did not like Gunn touching his son. He handed Liam to Cordelia and stood making his way over and scooping Connor up off the ground. He then faced Lorne, Fred, Wesley, and Gunn. "I am back."

"Well thank the heavens!" Lorne seemed excited, although he was picking up some weird vibes coming off who he thought was Angel. He couldn't put his finger on them yet.

"I don't know how much they had to do with it." Angelus smirked.

"Well it doesn't matter who got you back, point is, you're back." Fred was about to begin one of her long rants and everyone seemed to know it. "So now things can just go back to normal and we can go back to the hotel…unless of course you don't want to stay at the hotel anymore Angel since…well the boys and Cordelia…or everyone can move back and we can start working again and Angel Investigations…"

"There is no Angel Investigations." Angelus cut her off short.

Everyone seemed to be shocked by Angelus' words for a minute.

"What?" Gunn asked.

"I'm done with it." Angelus said. Sure he was going to pretend to be Angel, but like hell he was helping people like Angel did. He was still evil. "I am not fighting for the Powers anymore."

"But it's your job." Fred told him. "You're redemption."

"I don't give a crap about my redemption." Angelus snapped. Fred, Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne were all starting to get under his skin and he wanted to do nothing more then snap each one of their necks extremely slowly and suck the life out of them. However, he knew that would not be his best course of action at the moment.

"Angel…" Cordelia spoke up from the couch.

"Cordelia, stay out of it." Angelus instructed her.

Cordelia was taken back by the coldness in his voice. Angel never spoke to her like that before.

"Now, I am done helping the helpless." Angelus told Wesley, Gunn, Lorne, and Fred. "I want to be left alone…" He looked back to Cordelia who was still holding Liam, and then at Connor in his own arms. "With my family. So go find yourselves another superhero to ass kiss."

"What the hell is your problem?" Wesley spoke up.

Angelus had Wesley by the throat in a second, dangling him in the air. "Don't go there with me." Angelus then realized what he was doing when he heard Wesley gasping for air. He released the man and turned his back to Angel's four friends so all he could see was Cordelia and Liam. "Get out."

"Cordelia, come with us." Fred told her. She didn't trust Angel. He seemed so angry right now.

"No." Angelus answered for Cordelia. "She is staying here."

"Cordy, Fred's right, cupcake, come with us." Lorne pleaded.

Angelus turned to face the four of them. "I said no."

"Cordelia can answer for herself." Gunn stepped up.

"Just go guys." Cordelia did answer. Something was bothering Angel and she needed to know what. She knew she wouldn't be able to find out with Lorne, Wesley, Gunn, and Fred there.

The four friends seemed shocked by Cordelia's response but did as she asked, shuffling out of the apartment. 

The minute they closed the door behind them, Cordelia stood, shifting Liam in her arms. "What the hell Angel?"

"What?" Angelus shrugged. He thought he had handled himself pretty good. He hadn't punctured any of their lungs.

"Why were you such an ass to them?" Cordelia motioned to the door.

Angelus shook his head, setting Connor on the floor and making his way over to the wall, leaning his forearms against it so he was facing it. "They don't trust me."

"I wouldn't either after that." Cordelia spoke of what had happened earlier.

"Damn it!" Angelus punched the wall, causing Cordelia to jump in surprise. He was angry, he did not want Gunn, Wesley, Lorne, or Fred around. He did not want them around Cordelia. She was his now, she had given birth to his child and taken care of his other, therefore she belonged to him. The demon in him wanted to keep it that way. He couldn't let that stupid Fang Gang ruin it for him.

"Angel…" Cordelia said softly, patting his shoulder.

Angelus turned to Cordelia. She looked so sad and for some reason it killed him inside. He couldn't explain it, and he was starting to hate her for it, but everytime he looked at her he could feel Angel, deep down in his gut, forcing his way through. Angel just wanted to be near Cordelia, and that made Angelus even more jealous. Cordelia was his now. 

"Angel, what happened to you?" Cordelia asked.

"I…" Angelus didn't know what to say, so he said what he thought could possible happen, what he knew would spark some kind of idea in Cordelia's head. "They will turn you against me."

"Who?" Cordelia asked.

"Wesley…and Gunn and them." Angelus said. "They will turn you against me because they don't trust me. They thought you were better off without me."

"That's not true." Cordelia defended her friends.

"They could have found me." Angelus was lying now, but it was something he was good at. Much better then Angel had ever been. "They didn't. They don't want me to be with you. They kept me from you."

Cordelia looked into Angelus' eyes and thought he was telling the truth. She had always been able to tell when Angel was lying, but what she didn't realize was that this vampire in front of her was not Angel, not the vampire she loved, just a shadow of him. "Why?" She asked.

"Because they don't want you to be happy. If you're happy, they lose you and the visions and their purpose." Angelus continued to lie. "I am just looking out for you, Cordelia."

And Cordelia bought every word of it. She leaned in quickly, capturing Angelus' lips. "I love you. I wanted to tell you, but you left. I am not letting you go again."

Angelus did not respond with word, instead he captured Cordelia's lips again in a kiss. It was not nearly as loving and gentle as Angel had kissed her that night at the ballet, but it was just as passionate, just as lustful, and Cordelia had wanted t kiss him for so long that she missed how Angelus' tongue was a little sharper, and his force a little harder. She just wanted her Angel back so bad she was willing to ignore all the subtle details that were letting her know this wasn't Angel.


	27. Chapter 27

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 27**

Angelus watched Cordelia as she gracefully moved around the kitchen of her apartment, cleaning up after Connor's breakfast while keeping an eye on Liam who sat in his carrier on the kitchen table. Angelus was in the living room with Connor who was busy building a castle with his blocks.

Angelus had been staying with Cordelia for close to a week now, and his desire for her had grown immensely, which confused and frustrated the vampire. For one, he was evil and a vampire, so he didn't understand how he could grow to care for a human so much. At first it had been just primal instinct, to take care of his own, but more and more recently he was starting to not mind having Cordelia around. He was frustrated, however, because she thought he was Angel, and therefore he had gotten zero in the sex department from her. She was too worried about Angelus, which pissed the soulless vampire off, because he was Angelus. Cordelia had nothing to worry about, she just didn't know that.

He smiled to himself at the thought of her actually finding out who he was. He wondered what she would do, probably try to stake him. He studied her over once more from his seat, and realized she didn't have that in her. No matter what she had promised Angel, Angelus knew she would never kill him.

Cordelia caught Angelus starring at her and smiled warmly at him. "What are you looking at?"

"You." Angelus stood quickly, using his vampire speed to get into the kitchen and wrapped his arms around Cordelia, kissing her neck softly and wanting nothing more than to sink his teeth into her jugular. He wouldn't kill her, he just wanted to mark her. She was his.

"What's gotten into you?" Cordelia giggled. Angel, regardless of if he had feelings for them or not, was never this touchy with woman, it startled Cordelia. She was still getting used to it. Plus, she was still unsure of where she stood with the vampire she thought was Angel. He had never told her his feelings for her since he had been back. He just kissed her and held her and climbed into bed with her. True, they had only literally slept in the bed, but still, Cordelia needed to know what the vampire was thinking.

"I just want to be around you." Angelus hissed in her ear.

Cordelia turned and looked into his eyes, and for the first time in years, realized she could not read him. She had always had a gift, she had always known exactly what Angel was thinking or feeling no matter what he said, but now she could not read him. She thought being apart for so long might have made her lose touch with the vampire. She had no idea it wasn't Angel in front of her. She smiled up at him, and he smiled back. Cordelia was taken back by his smile, however. She recognized it before, but not from Angel. Her thoughts were cut short, however, as Liam's cries filled the room.

"What's wrong, baby?" Cordelia moved quickly to her son, scooping the two and a half month old up.

Once he was in her arms, Liam stopped crying, however, and cuddled close to Cordelia's chest, leaning his head onto her breast.

"A boy who knows what he likes." Angelus said proudly, pointing at Liam's head and now little hand both on Cordelia's right breast.

"Angel…" Cordelia gave him a raised eyebrow.

"What?" Angelus asked. "I was just saying…"

"Dad?" Connor was tugging on Angelus' pants.

Angelus looked down to see Connor glancing up at him. He had Darla's eyes, Angelus could see it already. "Yeah?"

"You play?" Connor held up two blocks.

"Sure." Angelus nodded, making his way back into the living room with Connor. He felt so odd, less evil, when he was around Cordelia and his son's. He felt more like Angel. It angered him, but he knew he could do nothing about it. He would not hurt his family, nor would he let anyone else close enough to them to hurt them. Not ever.

Gunn pulled all the weapons out of the cabin in one swift motion, letting them bang all over the floor causing Fred and Wesley to rush out of the kitchen where they had been busy cleaning up after their lunch. Lorne had left about an hour earlier and headed down to Carita's to get ready for the night.

"What the hell?" Fred asked when she enter the lobby. "Charles, what are you doing?"

"He doesn't want to save the world anymore, then we don't need his weapons." Gunn huffed, kicking Angel's broad-sword across the lobby.

"Gunn, I understand you're upset but…" Wesley started.

"No you don't." Gunn told him. "I lost my sister to his kind. I devoted my life to fighting for what's good. He was the first piece of that puzzle and now when he finally walks back in and is able to help he peaces out?"

"He is probably just confused…" Fred defended Angel. "Think of all he's been through."

"Think of all we've been through!" Gun countered. "All the pain and the work and worryin' about Cordy while he is away. I mean, we took care of his damn family and he doesn't even thank us!"

"We need to just give them a few days to sort everything out." Fred said.

"It's been a week." Gunn said.

"Still…" Fred said. "They are both probably just taking everything in. I mean Cordelia…"

"Let's talk about Cordelia!" Gunn threw his arms out. "She just sided with him! Didn't even try to compromise, just told us to leave!"

"She loves him." Fred tried to defend Cordelia. "She just got him back, of course she doesn't want to lose him again."

"He was rather rude to her." Wesley remembered.

"He was rude to all of us." Gunn said.

"No, I know that." Wesley thought harder. "But Cordelia never lets anyone talk for her like that."

"She just missed him." Fred continued to defend her friend.

"But why was he like that?" Wesley questioned. "In all the years I have known Angel he has never been so rude before."

"He's a vampire…" Gunn said. "We shouldn't expect any more from him."

"Something wasn't right with him." Wesley shook his head. "I just don't know what it is, but something wasn't right at all."

"I don't trust him with Cordelia." Gunn said.

"He would never hurt her." Fred said immediately.

"You don't know that. He practically strangled Wesley." Gunn reminded her.

Wesley felt his throat at the mention of the incident. It was still slightly bruised. "Whenever Cordelia decides to come back into work we will talk to her about it."

"If she ever comes back." Gunn sighed. "If Angel lets her."

"I can't see Cordelia letting him make that big of a decision for her." Fred said. "After all, she still has the visions."

"Yeah, but for who?" Gunn asked. "Our champion is gone."

Fred and Wesley just looked at each other and then down at the ground. No one standing in the lobby would make eye contact with each other. No one wanted to admit that Gunn was right. That their champion really was gone; maybe for good this time.

Buffy sighed, as she paid the taxi cab driver and moved toward the front of the club. She had been all around Los Angeles demon hang-outs since she had first arrived in the city and still, not a single sign of Angelus. She was beginning to wonder if he had even come to Los Angeles anymore. She knew the Powers told her he was going to go after Cordelia and Connor and the new baby but now she was starting to doubt that. After all, someone like Angelus could not keep his profile low for long.

Buffy moved to the club door. She had heard that this particular club was a demon sanctuary of some sort and that no violence could occur in it. She didn't mind violence, she was actually quite used to using violence to get what she needed. She was unsure of how things would go if she couldn't use her violent side.

She entered the club and scanned it. She saw a mix of humans and demons all around, laughing and drinking and having a good time. There was even a demon on stage singing.

Buffy moved to the bar and found two vampires sitting there over glasses of blood. She leaned on the counter next to them. "Hey boys."

The vampires turned and looked Buffy over. The vampire closer to Buffy, who was wearing a cowboy hat smiled at her. "Hey beautiful. Can we help you?"

"Actually, you can." Buffy told them. "I am looking for a particular vampire."

"Well, we know quite a few." The other vampire told her. He had dark hair cut similarly to Angel's. It made Buffy cringe.

"Well…this one is pretty well known. I have been looking for him for awhile now. I heard he might be here in L.A." Buffy told them. "His name is Angelus."

The two vampires looked at each other and laughed.

"Angelus hasn't been around for years. His souled-half, Angel? Well, he left L.A. about a year ago." The one with the cowboy hat said. "Probably dead somewhere."

"Oh." Buffy nodded. It was the same story at every bar, club, even demon book-club she went to it was the same story. Angelus had not been back in years and Angel was long gone from the city, expected to be dead. "Well thanks." Buffy turned to move out of the club.

"Maybe I can help you." A voice came from behind Buffy.

Buffy turned to find herself looking at a familiar green demon. She remembered meeting him at the Hyperion Hotel about a year ago. "You."

"My name is Lorne." Lorne told her. "Now why don't you come sit down and we will have a little chat." Lorne motioned Buffy to a booth in the corner of the room.

Buffy complied and followed Lorne to the booth. She sat down and stared at the demon, unsure of what to exactly say to someone who had been so close to Angel. She did not think this was going to be the easiest conversation.

Lilah was at a loss. She knew Angelus was back and roaming. She assumed he would come back to Los Angeles immediately but still there had been no word of him anywhere, let alone word of him roaming the city. She looked out her window to the streets below, wondering how long it would take before the killer vampire came to destroy the lives of so many in the city.

A knock on the door caused Lilah to turn around. "Come in."

"It's just me." Gavin strolled into the room.

"I wish they would put a collar on you so I knew where you were and could avoid you." Lilah sighed.

"Nice." Gavin slimed sarcastically. "If you don't want the news on Angelus I'll just leave." He turned back to the door.

"What about Angelus?" Lilah asked.

Gavin turned back to her, a smile of satisfaction on his face. "That's what I thought." He moved into the room. "He has been spotted."

"By who?" Lilah asked.

"A source saw him stalking around apartments a week ago. Took them awhile to come forth with the information, but he is back, and he is in L.A." Gavin told her.

"Good." Lilah nodded. "This is good."

"You think he will take the seer and the children out?" Gavin asked.

"I am counting on it." Lilah told him, and she was counting on it. She was sure Angelus would want to take every single person out that mattered to Angel, and she was also sure she could convince him that Wolfram and Hart would be a great asset to him regardless of how he had acted back in Ireland.

Cordelia moved to finish setting the table for dinner. She had made Angel a special cup of blood, with a pinch of cinnamon, warmed to room temperature, just like he liked it. For herself and Connor she had made chicken and rice. She pulled Liam's baby seat up to the table, next to her chair before moving into the living room to gather her boys for dinner. She found Liam asleep in his carrier while Angel and Connor played on the floor with some action figures. It looked like Angel was teaching Connor how the action figures could kill each other, slamming the figures into each other and then letting one fall. Cordelia made a mental note to talk to Angel after dinner about showing Connor violence like that.

"Dinner is ready." Cordelia smiled from her spot in the kitchen doorway, resting her hands on her hips.

"Yay!" Connor jumped to his feet, blowing past Cordelia and to the table.

Angelus smiled up at Cordelia. She looked beautiful and he let images of what he could do to her body run through his head. He then stood, moving toward Cordelia and pulling her by the waste to his lips. He kissed her roughly. "You look good."

"Thanks." Cordelia smiled up, unsure of how to take his compliment. Angel never talked to her like that. Cordelia was starting to tell something was different about Angel, but she couldn't put her finger on it, she still had no idea that it was in fact Angelus sharing her apartment with her. She thought maybe it was because he had been away for so long, and she could only guess what he had been through. He still wouldn't talk about where he had been or what had happened to him.

Angelus moved past her, but Cordelia leaned into him. "Can you grab Liam for me so I can get Connor set up?"

Angelus looked down at her, a look of surprise on his face. "You do it." He went to move past her.

"Excuse me?" Cordelia was shocked Angel had just said that to her. He was never that rude before.

"You do it. He is you're job." Angelus repeated himself. He was hungry, and Angelus, because of the time period he had been around for, felt it was Cordelia's place to take care of Liam; she was the mother. He then moved her to the side and went to the table, sitting down next to Connor who had already dug into his food.

Cordelia was slightly shocked by Angel's words but numbly moved forward, gathering a sleeping Liam and moving him into his baby seat next to her chair. She then sat down across from Angelus, thinking it was Angel, still in shock.

"Mom, you 'kay?" Connor asked with a mouthful of food.

"Don't talk with your mouth full." Cordelia instructed Connor numbly.

"Sorry." Connor apologized, swallowed and repeated himself. "You 'kay?"

"Yeah." Cordelia snapped out of her trance. "Why, sweetie?"

"You didn't eat none." Connor pointed to her plate.

Cordelia looked down at her plate and realized she hadn't touched her food yet. She picked at her plate and smiled at Connor. "Yeah, I'm just not that hungry."

"Good." Angelus said. "Take that baby weight off."

"What?" Cordelia looked down at her body. She knew she still needed to take a few pound off, but she never thought Angel would be the one to remind her.

"I just mean, you could…you know." Angelus realized that he had been extremely rude, and knew Angel would never say something like that. If he wanted to keep making Cordelia believe he was Angel he needed to continue to act like his souled counterpart. Plus, he didn't think Cordelia looked bad at all with the few extra pounds. She was still gorgeous. "Never mind, I…I'm sorry." Angelus choked on the last word. He hated apologizing.

"Yeah…" Cordelia mumbled, looking back down at her plate and moving her food around some more. She really wasn't hungry anymore.

"Come on, Cordelia, I didn't mean it." Angelus did not want her to be in a bitchy mood the rest of the night.

"It's fine." Cordelia looked up at him. "You're right, I probably could lose some weight."

Angelus just shook his head, taking another sip of his blood.

"Anyway…" Cordelia decided to change the subject. "I wanted to talk to you about work."

"What about it?" Angelus raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well…about me going back to work…at the hotel." Cordelia looked up at Angelus hopefully. "I know you don't want to go back and work and that's fine but I think I can still help people and…"

"No." Angelus cut her off. "Not a chance in hell."

"We need the money, Angel." Cordelia told him point blank.

"I'll get a job." Angelus told her.

"Where? You can't exactly work during the day." Cordelia reminded him.

"I managed before Angel Investigations." Angelus reminded her.

"You lived off rats." Cordelia countered.

Angelus clenched his jaw. He did not like Cordelia's response, although it was true. "That was when I was wimpy-whiny soul-boy." The minute Angelus referenced to Angel he knew he had messed up big time.

Cordelia caught it too, raising an eyebrow. "You are still "soul-boy"…"

"I mean…I…that was before." Angelus tried. "When I was a loser…when I had no purpose."

''And by quitting Angel Investigations, how do you still have a purpose?" Cordelia questioned him, thinking he was Angel.

"I can't do it anymore." Angelus told her. Truthfully, he just couldn't. He didn't want to pretend he was Angel anymore. He wanted to just tell her who he was and that regardless of that she was his, he would never turn on her. He knew, however, she wouldn't believe him. "I want to start over."

Cordelia was silent for a moment, and then nodded. She felt bad for him. "Angel, what happened to you?"

"Nothing." Angelus shook his head, taking another sip of his blood. "We're done with this conversation." He banged his glass on the table.

"Dad mad." Connor said at Angelus' reaction.

"I'm not mad!" Angelus snapped at his son, and then immediately felt bad about it when he saw Connor's scared reaction. No, Angelus didn't feel bad, but deep down inside of him Angel did. Angelus could feel it.

"Angel, don't yell at him." Cordelia stood, picking Connor up out of his seat. "Connor, why don't you go in your room and play for a little? Mommy will come check on you soon, okay?" She placed Connor down, glancing up at Angelus, still thinking he was Angel.

Connor nodded, glancing at Angelus one more time before taking off down to his room.

Angelus cringed under Cordelia's glare. He might have been the most notorious, evil, munupliative vampire in history, but even he felt small under Cordelia's angry stare. "I didn't mean it."

"Save it." Cordelia picked up her plate and Connor and banged them into the sink loud enough to wake up Liam, who began crying.

Angelus immediately reacted to Liam's cries, but Cordelia stepped in front of him.

"Don't bother. He is my job, right?" Cordelia picked Liam up and hushed the infant. "Shh…baby Mommy has you…don't cry." She kissed Liam on the head.

Once Liam had calmed down, Angelus dug his hands into his pockets. He didn't know why, but he did not want Cordelia to be upset with him. "I…I didn't mean to yell."

"You have been a real jerk tonight, do you know that?" Cordelia asked him.

"I am trying my hardest here, Cordelia." Angelus told her. And it was true, it was taking every muscle in his body to not snap and throw her across the room like he used to do to Darla. He knew deep down, Angel would never allow that. Angel was trying his best to fight his way back up, but Angelus was strong enough right now to keep the soul at bay. He needed to keep things that way, he needed Cordelia to believe he was Angel. "Look, go back to work."

"What?" Cordelia looked at him, still bouncing Liam in her arms.

"Go back to work. Go back in sometime next week, but that's it." Angelus told her. He did not want her around the Fang Gang, afraid one of them would catch on, or Lorne would find a way to read him. "I want you to find another job."

"Angel..." Cordelia started.

"Please?" Angelus asked, putting his hands on her shoulders, trying his best to be affectionate. "I don't want them to turn you on me. They will. I know it. They have kept us apart so long, don't let them do it again."

After a minute, Cordelia nodded. She understood why Angel was so worried, or so she thought. She had no idea Angelus was the one standing in front of her. All she knew was the vampire in front of her seemed so different from the one she had fallen in love with. This one was disconnected, and seemed to be so stressed out. Cordelia only hoped he would let her in soon, she just wanted to help him. "Okay."

"Good." Angelus tried his best to smile like Angel would, and he almost had it down, except for the slight curl at the corner of his lips. Angel never smiled like that, but Cordelia did not notice it. She was too wrapped up in thinking of how sad Angel seemed now, still not knowing it was not her Angel that she was speaking to at all.

Lorne and Buffy sat down in the booth still in silence. Buffy was not about to start the conversation and she had a feeling that Lorne was holding a grudge against her for her attitude the last time she had been in Los Angeles. She wondered if he would even believe her when she told him about Angelus.

"Why are you looking for Angelus?" Lorne asked.

Buffy sighed. "Because…"

"Because what?" Lorne raised an eyebrow, still upset with how Buffy had treated Cordelia when she found out she was pregnant. He was not a fan of the Slayer at all. "Did you find Angel, sleep with him, and think now because he left you that you released Angelus? Because sweetie, Angel is back, and he is with Cordelia."

"He is with Cordelia?" Buffy felt the blood drain from her face. Sure, she was not a fan of Cordelia, but she knew this was bad. "Is she okay?"

"Of course she is. She has Angel back." Lorne said, although he did not know for sure. Cordelia had not spoken to any members of the Fang Gang since they had been kicked out of her apartment.

"No. You don't understand." Buffy told him. "That's not Angel. Wolfram and Hart…they did something, they took his soul or buried his soul within him, I am not really sure…but…Angel is gone."

Lorne was silent for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "You're lying."

"No." Buffy shook her head quickly. "I am not. Cordelia…her kids…they are in danger."

"Prove it." Lorne told her. He was skeptical, but it would somewhat make sense considering how rude Angel had been to them all when they had seen him at Cordelia's. Sure, he had not tried to kill any of them, but he did choke Wesley.

"How?" Buffy asked.

"Sing for me." Lorne told her, seeing she was confused he explained himself. "You sing, I read you. I'll know if you're lying."

"Sure…fine." Buffy said, taking a deep breath and singing a few lines from Missy Higgins "Where I Stood". She barely made it a few lines in before Lorne waved for her to stop.

"That's enough." Lorne looked a much paler shade of green.

"Did you read me?" Buffy asked.

Lorne nodded. He had read her. "Cordelia is in trouble."


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 28**

Lorne knocked on his bedroom door, slightly annoyed. Buffy had locked herself in there two days ago right after telling Lorne Angelus was back because he had suggested that they go over to the hotel. Buffy had no desire to do that, and when Lorne tried to use force on the Slayer she knocked him unconscious and boarded herself up in his bedroom.

"Buffy! We need to go to the hotel." Lorne told her. "You need to explain everything to Wesley and the rest of them. We need to protect Cordelia."

"Then go yourself, Mr. Greenie." Buffy said from the other side of the door.

"I already told you, I didn't read everything off of you, only the important stuff, you need to get over to the hotel and tell the group the rest." Lorne said. "Besides, if you don't we will lose Angel for good. I know you don't want that."

"He wants Cordelia." Buffy replied.

"Well, you can't control freewill but you can help us get Angel back so he can have the freewill to choose." Lorne tried. "Now please, come out?"

A few second of silence were followed by Lorne's bedroom door opening reluctantly and Buffy filing out. She looked up at Lorne. "Fine, lets go."

"Just one thing before we go." Lorne nodded before punching Buffy square across the face. "Don't **ever** lock me out of my own bedroom or tell me Cordelia is in trouble and then not help again, understood?"

Buffy was in shock that Lorne had hit her but nodded numbly. "Yeah."

"Good." Lorne seemed satisfied. "Let's go." He led Buffy out of the club where the pair proceeded to walk to the Hyperion Hotel in silence. Finally they arrived and Lorne turned back to Buffy. "You are going to go in there and explain everything, got it?"

Buffy nodded, not liking the fact that she had to take orders from a demon. "Yeah, fine."

Lorne nodded back at her and then entered the Hyperion Hotel to find Wesley, Fred, and Gunn all sitting at the counter, playing cards.

"Hey Lorne!" Fred nodded from her seat. "Want to join us?"

"Actually, we have some other stuff to take care of." Lorne said. "Mainly the reason I haven't been around the past two days."

"What stuff?" Wesley raised an eyebrow.

"This." Lorne pointed to the door as Buffy walked in.

"Buffy?" Wesley was surprised to see the Slayer.

"Hey Wes." Buffy gave a half-hearted wave.

"What is she doing here?" Gunn stood, still angry at the way Buffy had treated Cordelia last time she had come to the hotel.

"Buffy is here to help." Lorne said.

"With what?" Fred asked.

Lorne looked back at Buffy. "Do you want to tell them or should I?"

Buffy sighed. "Angelus."

"What about Angelus?" Wesley immediately stood.

"He is back." Buffy said.

"No." Fred shook her head. "Angel is back."

"No." Buffy responded. "It's Angelus. Trust me."

"You're lying." Gunn immediately accused.

Buffy looked to Lorne for some help.

"She isn't." Lorne said, almost sadly. "I read her."

"How…what?" Wesley seemed lost.

"Wolfram and Hart took Angel's soul in exchange for sparing Cordelia and Angel's kids lives." Buffy explained. "Or they buried it inside of him…I am not sure, all I know is that it's not Angel."

"How long have you known?" Wesley questioned.

"Since it happened. A few weeks maybe." Buffy said.

"And you neglected to contact us before this?" Wesley seemed beyond pissed.

"I thought I could handle it." Buffy said.

"Well clearly you couldn't!" Gunn was enraged and didn't mind showing it. "And we left him with Cordelia! And Connor and Liam…damn it! What if he…"

"He didn't kill them." Fred said. "Remember? I talked to Cordelia yesterday? She said everything was okay."

"Still…its only a matter of time." Gunn said.

Wesley nodded in agreement. "We need to tell Cordelia. We need to keep them all safe until we can figure out a way to restore Angel's soul."

The rest of the group immediately went to work without saying another word to each other, collecting weapons to use against Angelus. They were going to save Cordelia, Connor, and Liam no matter what 

the cost. Buffy, however, just took a seat on the stairs, seemingly numb to everything that was going on around her.

Cordelia hurried around her bedroom that she now shared with who she thought was Angel. She quickly pinned her hair up into a messy bun before throwing on a pair of jeans and a cute brown jacket. She was finally going back to work, even if Angel had requested it was her last day there.

"Mom!" Connor came rushing into the room.

"What, sweetie?" Cordelia asked, checking her purse for her car keys.

"Dad need you help." Connor offered Cordelia his hand.

Cordelia took her son's hand and allowed him to lead her down the hall to Liam's room, where Angelus was trying to burp a crying Liam.

"Oh Liam, what's wrong, baby?" Cordelia moved quickly, scooping Liam up from Angelus' arms. She immediately placed Liam on her shoulder and began to burp him. He seemed to settle down immediately.

"Thank God!" Angelus was relieved to see Cordelia, and then looked her over, seeing she looked extremely sexy in her outfit. "You look good."

"You like?" Cordelia did a small twist for Angelus, watching him glance her up and down. His eyes roamed her, and if she had been paying close enough attention, she would have noticed that they were not Angel's eyes. Angel would never look at her as if she was dinner.

"I do." Angelus licked his lips. "What's the occasion?"

"I'm going back into work." Cordelia seemed to mumbled, her eye's not meeting the vampire across from her. She instead focused on Connor who was now holding onto one of Angelus' legs and spinning in a figure eight through his father's legs. Finally, she met Angelus' eyes. "Remember? We discussed this a few days ago."

Angelus nodded, he remembered, but he did not like it. He wanted nothing more then to tell her she wasn't going anywhere, but he knew Angel would never do that, and therefore he could never do it. Not if he was going to keep making Cordelia believe his disguise. "Yeah."

"It's only for a few hours." Cordelia swayed, soothing Liam even more now. The child was resting his head on his mother's shoulders, his eyes closed. "And then when I come home that will be it."

"You promise me, right?" Angelus picked Connor up, sick of the child circling through his legs. "You're not going to work there anymore."

Cordelia took a deep breath. "Angel…they are like family."

"No." Angelus snapped. "I am your family. Me and your sons. Those…those people aren't."

"Angel…" Cordelia raised an eyebrow at his name for the Fang Gang. "They aren't just _those people_, they were your friends at some point."

"Well, they aren't anymore." Angelus told her. "And they aren't going to be yours either."

"Angel…" Cordelia tried, not liking how the vampire disguised as Angel was trying to cut her off from the people who cared about her.

"Don't Angel me." Angelus snapped, then recovered, seeing the hurt in Cordelia's eyes. He hated seeing her hurt; no he didn't. Angel hated it, and Angelus hated feeling Angel deep down inside and all of the souled-vampire's emotions. Lately, it was getting harder and harder for Angelus to suppress Angel's feelings. "I just think they are going to hurt you in the long run."

"We will see, I guess." Cordelia sighed, kissing Liam on the head and placing the now sleeping baby in his crib. "Be good sweetie." She ran a hand over his head. She then moved to Connor. "Come here, Connor."

Connor lunged from Angelus' arms and into Cordelia's, kissing her on the cheek. "Love you, Mommy."

"And I love you." Cordelia rubbed her nose against Connor's, her infamous grin taking up her whole face. "You be a good boy for Daddy, okay?"

Connor looked at Angelus and then back at Cordelia, nodding. "I will."

"Good." Cordelia placed Connor on the floor and he immediately jetted out of the room and into the living room where all his toys were.

"Call me if you or the boys need anything." Cordelia moved toward Angelus.

"We will be fine." Angelus told her.

"I mean it, Angel. Call me if anything comes up. I will be back here in a flash." Cordelia told the vampire.

Angelus cringed. He hated the way she called him Angel because he despised Angel for all the good he had done, all the lives he had saved, but mostly for being the only one who really held Cordelia's heart. Angelus knew he could never compete. He glanced Cordelia up and down once more before nodding. "I will."

"Good." Cordelia leaned in and kissed Angelus' on the cheek, debating her next words but deciding to say them anyway. "I love you."

Angelus just nodded, knowing he had broken her heart by not returning the words, but he couldn't. Not when he knew she really wasn't talking to him, she was talking to Angel. She was always talking to Angel. "Be home soon."

Cordelia nodded reluctantly and then made her way out of Liam's bedroom. A minute later Angelus heard the door slam shut and he knew he was now alone to take care of his two sons for the day. Not that he minded, he liked being around his offspring. It made him feel proud, and it seemed to give him a little purpose.

Buffy continued to watch from her spot on the stairs as Fred, Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne all hurried around the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel, filling up bags with weapons and books and spells and supplies. They were going to save Cordelia, Connor, and Liam, and try their best to save Angel.

"Are you going to help or just sit there?" Gunn snapped up at Buffy.

Buffy sighed and stood. "What can I really do?"

"You're a damn slayer." Wesley told her. "You could start by helping us capture Angelus."

"He will kill you all before you even blink if he needs to." Buffy told them.

"We need to save Cordy." Fred said.

"And we need to do it fast." Lorne added, getting fed up with Buffy's entire attitude. "So you can either help us or not…"

"Help who with what?" Cordelia smiled as she entered the Hyperion, unable to see Buffy from where she was standing.

"Cordelia?" Fred's mouth practically hung open. "You're alive!"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Cordelia raised an eyebrow.

"Because we all thought you would be dead by now." Buffy descended the stairs, causing Cordelia to turn and see the Slayer.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Cordelia asked, angry that Buffy was standing in front of her. She was mad that Buffy had found Angel and not told anyone, but she also still held a small resentment for the Slayer and how she had reacted to Cordelia's pregnancy with Liam.

"I am here to help." Buffy told her.

"With what? Lowering my self-esteem?" Cordelia snapped. "Because I have some news for you, Buffy. I am done trying to be nice to you, you don't deserve it, and I am done letting you intimidate me. I am Cordelia Chase, and I can be the biggest bitch ever, and right now that's exactly what I am going to be to you."

"Well, be a bitch later." Gunn told her. "Because right now we need to save your kids and get Angelus." He moved toward the door.

"Wait, what?" Cordelia held her hand out, stopping Gunn by touching his chest as he went to walk past her. "What about Angelus."

Gunn looked back to Wesley, Fred, and Lorne to help him explain what he said.

Wesley sighed, stepping forward. "Cordelia, we have reason to believe that it's not Angel who has come back, but in fact Angelus."

Cordelia shook her head, laughing a little. "Was that supposed to be funny?"

"This isn't a joke, princess." Lorne told her. "We wish it were but…"

"You're lying." Cordelia told them all immediately, realizing they were being serious. "Angelus is not the one at home with my sons. It's their father, it's Angel."

"It's Angelus." Buffy said.

"How the hell would you know?" Cordelia snapped at the Slayer.

"Because I him, after Wolfram and Hart did whatever they did…" Buffy tried to explain.

Cordelia backed away from the group, somewhere between anger and tears. "You are all liars."

"Cordelia…we understand how confused you must be…but Liam and Connor…" Wesley started.

"Are fine." Cordelia cut him off. "They are at home with their father who loves them very much…" She shook her head. "Angel was right."

"Right about what?" Lorne questioned. He realized now there was a good chance Cordelia would walk out the door and they would not get the chance to help her. "What did he say?"

"He told me you would all do this…" Cordelia took another step to the door. "I didn't want to believe him…but he was right." Cordelia seemed to shake her head, tears filling her eyes as if she was in disbelief.

"What did he tell you, Cordy?" Gunn asked this time.

"He told me you would all turn on me, try and take him from me…" Cordelia told them what Angelus had told her earlier that week.

"Cordy, we are your family…we would never turn on you." Fred tried, realizing Cordelia was not going to believe them.

"You knew where Angel was." Cordelia seemed to accuse Wesley.

"I had an idea…" Wesley told her. It was true, he thought Angel had been in Ireland, but it was only a theory.

"You didn't even try to get him back." Cordelia told him. "You kept us apart."

"We didn't…" Wesley realized now that Angelus had fed Cordelia all the lies that he needed to in order to get Cordelia to turn on the Fang Gang. What Wesley didn't understand was why Angelus had not already killed Cordelia or Connor or Liam or any of them in fact. That part didn't make sense.

"Cordelia." Gunn said. "Angelus lied to you."

"It's Angel." Cordelia turned to the door. "And we are done here."

"You're not going anywhere." Buffy grabbed Cordelia by the shoulder. Regardless of the issues that the two of them had in the past, Buffy was not going to let Cordelia walk into a death trap.

"I said…" Cordelia turned to Buffy, slamming her in the shoulder and actually tossing her half way across the lobby. "We are done here." And with that Cordelia was out the door of the hotel.

"What the hell?" Buffy looked up at the group from her seat on the floor for an explanation.

"Cordelia is part demon now." Wesley said simply, explain how Cordelia had managed to toss Buffy half way across the room.

"And now we need to figure out how to save her since she doesn't seem to want to be saved." Fred spoke of Cordelia.

"We will save her. We just need to figure out how." Wesley said, almost matter-of-factly. He didn't know how, but he knew deep down he was going to get Angel back for Cordelia and manage to keep her and her children safe. He just needed some sort of plan.

Lilah was baffled. Angelus was in Los Angeles, the firm knew that much, but he had not really made himself known yet. She didn't understand it, she assumed all those years of being repressed by Angel would have led the vampire to create havoc in the city, and yet he had not even shown a bleep on their radar. She wanted to know where he was and what he was doing. She knew the firm needed him on their side regardless of what he wanted.

Lilah hit the call button on her phone and waited for her office door to swing open. A minute later it did swing opened and Gavin entered.

"Your rang?" Gavin asked sarcastically.

"We need to find him." Lilah moved to her window, not bothering to look at Gavin.

"Who?" Gavin asked.

"Who do you think?" Lilah turned to him with a raised eyebrow. "Angelus."

"We know he is in the city." Gavin reminded her.

"Yeah, but where?" Lilah asked. "We have no idea. If we are going to get him to do what we want him to, we need to find him."

"Well, what are our options here?" Gavin asked.

Lilah shook her head. "I don't know. I could have sworn Cordelia would have been the first one on Angelus' list, followed by Angel's kids. They all meant the world to Angel, I would have thought Angelus would have stomped them out."

"Maybe he will." Gavin suggested. "Maybe he just wants to make it a perfect kill."

Lilah thought for a second and then nodded. "If we find Cordelia…"

"We have a good chance of finding Angelus." Gavin finished Lilah's thought.

Lilah nodded again. It made sense. Cordelia might be their only lead to Angelus. She decided she would send some people out the following day to track Cordelia, keep an eye on her, and see if they could in turn find Angelus.

Angelus gave Cordelia credit. Connor and Liam were not the easiest boys to keep an eye after. Connor was bouncing around every chance he got and Liam seemed to be semi-distressed without his mother around. He would whimper every once and while, luckily Angelus soon realized that his vampire visage would make the baby's cries stop, just like it had done when Connor was an infant.

"Dad, play?" Connor asked from the floor of the living room.

Angelus was seated on the couch flipping through a car magazine with his shoes up on the coffee table next to Liam who was in his baby carrier. He looked up from the page. "Maybe later, kid."

Connor sighed but seemed to nod, going back to playing with his blocks by himself.

"You know something, _son_?" Angelus said after a minute. He needed to get some things off his chest and he had a feeling that Connor and Liam were the only two he could talk to that wouldn't immediately freak out and try to stake him.

"What?" Connor asked, not looking up at Angelus, but rather still placing his blocks neatly on top of each other.

"I can feel him deep inside." Angelus gritted his teeth and gave a hard poke to the middle of his own chest. "He is clawing at me, trying to resurface. He is right there…"

"Who?" Connor asked who his father was speaking of.

"That…damn Angel." Angelus referred to his souled counter-part.

"A angel?" Connor asked. His mother had spoken of an angel before this, but Connor had always gotten the angel and his dad confused. Cordelia had never really explained herself too well.

"Yeah." Angelus nodded. "And I just want to crush him. Stop him. He is trying so hard to ruin this for me. He just wants out."

"Let him go." Connor said. The child meant to let the angel his father was referring to out so he would stop bothering his dad, he had no idea Angelus was speaking of the father who actually loved Connor.

Angelus nodded, taking Connor's simple words more figuratively. "You're right…maybe I'll just let him go. Then maybe he will just die when he realizes he has no chance of coming back."

"No dying." Connor said. "Dying makes everybody cry."

Angelus smirked at this comment. "I'm dead."

"You different." Connor told him. "Mommy told me. You not the same kind of dead."

"You're mom told you that?" Angelus was impressed Cordelia had tried to explain so much to Connor.

Connor nodded. "She said you is a good kind of dead."

"Did she?" Angelus nodded, satisfied with that answer. He turned to Liam. "Hear that, kid? I am a good kind of dead."

Just then the front door of the apartment busted open and a distraught Cordelia made her way in. She looked around the living room, taking a breath of relief to find Connor, Liam, and who she thought was Angel, there.

Angelus stood. He could tell she had been crying, her eyes were blood shot and he could smell the salt of her tears. He immediately felt enraged and wanted to rip out the throat of whoever had hurt Cordelia. "What's wrong?"

"You were right." Cordelia just stood there, shaking her head.

"Right about what?" Angelus hated how concerned he was. Sure, he wanted to protect Cordelia, but only because she was his, the feeling of concern was not his, it was Angel's, and Angelus hated being able to feel it and not be able to control it.

Cordelia allowed herself to fall into Angelus' arms. "Wesley, Fred, Gunn, Lorne…they all don't want me to be with you." She clung to his shoulders.

Angelus awkwardly returned her embrace, rubbing her back as gently as he could. "They said that?"

"No." Cordelia sniffled, looking Angelus in the eye. She was so upset she did not notice that his eye's lacked the familiar twinkle the soul had given them. "Buffy was at the hotel."

"Buffy?" Angelus immediately clenched his jaw and fist, which was still rubbing Cordelia's back, at the mention of the Slayer.

Cordelia nodded.

"What did she want?" Angelus asked.

Cordelia seemed to laugh between her tears. "She came to tell me I was in danger…she tried to convince me that you were Angelus." She laughed again.

Angelus laughed too, but his was a bit more forced and uneasy. "What?"

Cordelia nodded. "They all did. They tried to tell me that you were going to hurt me." She glanced over at Liam and Connor. "That you were going to hurt your sons."

Angelus realized now that Cordelia had not believed the truth when she had heard it from the Fang Gang and Buffy and he was relieved. "I told you. I told you they wanted to keep us apart. Cordelia, you know I would never do anything to hurt you."

Cordelia nodded. "I know. I know…"

"I'll fix this." Angelus told her.

"What? What can you even do?" Cordelia asked him. "Besides just letting them all go."

Angelus nodded after a moment. He had thought of plenty of things to do to the Fang Gang and Buffy. Most of them involved long hours of torture, yet he knew that he could not tell Cordelia any of that. "Then we forget them."

"Mom? You 'kay?" Connor was standing at Cordelia's leg now.

Cordelia smiled down at Connor, squatting so she was eye level with her son. "Yeah, sweetie. Come here, Mommy just needs a hug."

Connor complied and threw his arms around Cordelia's neck. She then stood with him. "You want to come take a nap with me, sweetie?"

Connor nodded at his mother.

Cordelia then looked up at Angelus. "I am going to go lay down with him. I have a headache. Can you keep an eye on Liam?"

Angelus nodded, giving her a slight smile. "Sure."

"Thanks." Cordelia smiled back, moving to make her way to her bedroom. Angelus, however, tugged her back to him. "What?" She looked up at him.

Angelus just smiled again, diving in for a strong kiss. He was not about to lose Cordelia.

When the kiss ended, Cordelia smiled back up at the vampire before continuing on her way to her bedroom with Connor.

Once Angelus heard the door to the bedroom he shared with Cordelia close he slammed his fist against the wall causing Liam to flinch a little. Angelus was beyond angry. He wanted to kill the Buffy and every single member of the Fang Gang for almost exposing him to Cordelia. He decided he would pick them off one by one; he would just have to be careful about it so Cordelia did not suspect anything.


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 29**

It had been a few days since the hotel incident, and everything in Cordelia's apartment seemed to be going back to normal. The only problem now was that neither Cordelia nor Angelus had a job, and they needed one if they were going to keep the apartment and take care of Liam and Connor.

Cordelia sighed as she folded a few of Angelus' shirts and placed them neatly in stacks on her bed, surrounding Liam who was laying on the bed, trying his best to grab his own feet. Cordelia held up Angel's one and only red shirt. She had bought it for him two Christmases ago, but he told her he didn't want to wear it because it reminded him of Angelus. Angelus had worn a lot of red.

Cordelia found it odd now that Angel had worn the red shirt a few times already. Her thoughts drifted back to the Fang Gang's accusations that Angel was in fact Angelus. Cordelia, however, shook the thoughts away as Liam started giggling.

"What's so funny, hunny?" Cordelia rhymed, bending over Liam and tickling his ribs.

Liam just giggled some more before reaching out and grabbing a piece of Cordelia's hair.

"Baby, let Mommy go." Cordelia tried to pull her hair out of Liam's grasp but found it difficult; it was apparent that Liam was at least part demon. Liam pulled harder and Cordelia let out a yelp. "Ouch!"

"Everything okay?" Angelus seemed to come out of nowhere when he heard Cordelia's cry.

Cordelia finally freed herself from Liam and turned, smiling at Angelus. She studied him, and thought it was ridiculous to even entertain the idea that it was not Angel in front of her. Angelus would have killed her by now, not been concerned if she was okay. She had no idea how wrong she was. "Liam got a piece of my hair."

"Liam bad sometimes." Connor squeezed through Angelus' legs and into the bedroom.

"Connor, don't say that about your brother. He is just a baby. You were the same way." Cordelia said.

"Nah uh." Connor shook his head.

"Yeah huh." Cordelia bent down so she was eye level with Connor, smiling at her oldest son. She knew he was not hers by blood, his blonde hair alone was a reminder of his mother, of Darla, but Cordelia didn't care. Connor was her son now.

"Listen, Cordelia." Angelus said. "I am going to run out for a little. Okay?"

"Where are you going?" Cordelia stood.

"Out." Angelus didn't like being interrogated. He had no patients for it.

"Where?" Cordelia asked again.

Angelus realized now that Angel would just tell Cordelia. He knew he had to do the same if he was going to keep this act up. He especially needed to do it now, since he had almost been exposed by the Fang Gang and Buffy a few days ago, but he couldn't tell Cordelia the truth, so instead he lied. "I am going to look for a job. Something at night, maybe security or something. I have enough money saved up from over the years for now but…"

"Okay." Cordelia smiled, seeming satisfied with the vampire's story. She turned back to her laundry as Connor climbed up onto her bed, sitting next to Liam who was still laying in the middle, and still trying to grab his feet.

"Okay." Angelus hesitated, but then moved forward, kissing Cordelia on the cheek. He did not know why he did things like that, they were too sweet for the soulless vampire, but they weren't too sweet for Angel, and Angelus knew that's where those impulses were coming from, deep down. Angel was trying his best to make his way out. The soul wanted its spot back.

"Good luck." Cordelia said.

"Thanks." Angelus then turned out of the bedroom and out of the apartment. He was glad the sun had set already, that way he could move freely down the street. He was on a mission, and it was not to get a job. He had decided it was time to start taking care of the Fang Gang and Buffy and now he was making his way over to the Hyperion Hotel.

Gunn and Buffy stood by Angel's weapon cabinet, pulling out all the stakes, swords, and other various weapons that they thought the group could handle while Wesley, Fred, and Lorne sat at the counter, over blueprints of Cordelia's apartment complex as well as the hotel. They were going after Angelus, and they were going to try to get Angel back.

"Do we have a plan yet?" Gunn asked.

Wesley looked up from the papers in front of him. "If we go after him at Cordelia's apartment, I have found several ways to cut off any escape he might have. There are only two entrances to the sewer from her complex, so if we attack in the day Angelus will have little options."

"Unless he rips all our throats out…" Fred added with a sigh.

"I've handled him before." Buffy said.

"Yeah, we saw how well _that_ went over…" Lorne shook his head, still angry about how the Slayer had broken the news to him about Angelus and then waited two days to come to the hotel with him.

"Everything will work out." Buffy said.

"You better hope so because if one hair on Cordelia or Liam or Connor's head is missin', I'm gonna kill you myself." Gunn casually pointed a sword in the Slayer's direction, tapping her in the shouler with the end of it.

Buffy just gave Gunn an uneasy stare.

"Anyway…" Wesley cut through the tension of the room. "We could always try and get him to come here. We know this hotel pretty well."

"But so does he." Gun reminded the group. "Angel stayed in this place like fifty years ago, plus he lived here by himself when he threw us out, _and_ he is a vampire with vampire memory. Angelus probably knows this place inside and out."

"Valid point." Lorne tipped the sea breeze in his hand at Gunn.

"So basically we are screwed unless we attack Cordelia's apartment complex…which I am thinking could end up badly for us if people see us fighting in her apartment or chasing someone down with stakes and a sword." Fred ranted.

Lorne tipped his sea breeze to Fred. "Another valid point."

"Well then what do you guys plan on doing? Because I can't sit around here all day…" Buffy interrupted.

"You'll sit around if we tell you to." Gunn told the Slayer. "You took your damn time telling us Cordelia was in danger, and now you're going to take your damn time to fix it."

Buffy just sighed. "Fine, whatever. But we need a plan then."

"We are working on it." Wesley said quickly, tired of Buffy's ranting and complaining. The Slayer was really starting to get on his nerves and under normal circumstances he would have already asked her to leave but he knew he couldn't do that. If they were going to take Angelus down, they needed the strength of a slayer, and as much as she annoyed him, Wesley knew they needed Buffy.

Angelus thought he had been sneaky, making his way over to the Hyperion Hotel, but clearly he had not been sneaky enough. Lilah and Gavin had tracked him from their limo since he had left Cordelia's apartment. Clearly, his mind had been somewhere else though, because the psychopathic killer had not even noticed he was being followed, his vampire senses had never even kicked in to the possibility of it.

Angelus slowed down and so did the limo Gavin and Lilah sat in across the street from the vampire.

"What do you think he is doing?" Gavin asked.

"Look where we are." Lilah motioned out the window.

Gavin looked up to see they were across the street from the Hyperion Hotel. "Why would he stop here?"

Lilah smiled devilishly at Gavin. "To kill every breathing thing inside that place."

Gavin nodded slowly, still seeming a little hesitant to agree with Lilah. "Why would he attack them all at once? It would be easier for him to kill each of them separate."

"But where would the fun in that be?" Lilah asked, looking back out at Angelus who was still standing in front of the hotel. "He wants the others to see him at work, to make them all quiver at watching each other get ripped to pieces."

"You think?" Gavin asked.

"He is practically the world's most vicious vampire." Lilah rolled her eyes at Gavin. "He is a master-mind, sadistic monster. He just wants an audience."

Gavin nodded after a moment. Then he changed the subject somewhat. "If Angelus is here, does that mean he already handled Cordelia and those two brats of hers?"

Lilah looked back at Gavin for a moment, contemplating his question. She answered it with a simple shrug. "Who knows? Who cares? She will be dead soon enough."

Lilah then took another glance out her window at Angelus and could see he was now moving into the courtyard outside of the hotel. She then tapped on the glass that separated her and Gavin from the driver, indicating it was okay that they left now. As far as she was concerned, everyone in that hotel was as good as dead; she did not need to stick around to hear their screams.

Cordelia placed Liam down in his crib, the infant already close to sleep. Liam was a good sleeper, once he was tired that was it, there was no way around him not passing out right then and there. Cordelia was grateful for that. She was much happier with a son who would sleep rather then one who would not. Lucky for her, she got the best of both worlds.

Cordelia turned in the room to find that Connor had weaseled his way out of bed and out the door. He never liked to sleep. She sighed, running a hand through her hair and making her way out into the living room where she found Connor on the floor playing with a few action figures Gunn had bought him before the Fang Gang had been cut off from their family.

"Connor, its bedtime." Cordelia told her son.

"Nooo, Mommy." Connor made the same puppy-dog face Angel would make when he did not want Cordelia made at him. "I not tired."

"It's still bedtime, sweetie." Cordelia bent down next to Connor, putting some of his action figured away.

Connor pouted but knew he had lost the argument with his mother. "Fine."

"Come here." Cordelia picked Connor up the best she could. He was getting closer to two and a half now, and was definitely a growing boy, built exactly like Angel. She knew it wouldn't be too long before she could no longer carry him at all.

Cordelia made her way back into the bedroom Connor and Liam shared, placing Connor down on his bed and tucking him in. She then sat down next to him and ruffled his hair, leaning down and giving him a kiss. "Goodnight, sweetie."

"Good night, Mommy." Connor told her, looking down at his hands.

Cordelia raised an eyebrow, something was bothering Connor. She assumed it had been that she had put him to bed when he wasn't ready, still she was inclined to ask. "What's wrong, honey?"

"Dad left again." Connor said.

"What?" Cordelia was confused. "What do you mean, sweetie?"

"He leaved. He not coming back again." Connor said.

Cordelia gave a small half-smile when she realized what Connor was talking about. "No, sweetie. Daddy just went out to get a job so he could work. You know, like Mommy used to do at the hotel? He will be back later tonight."

"You sure?" Connor questioned Cordelia.

"Of course I am. Trust me, you're daddy is never going to leave you or Liam again." Cordelia promised her son. "Okay?"

"Okay." Connor nodded.

"Good. Now get some sleep." Cordelia stood, making her way to the door.

"Mom?" Connor called out before she left.

Cordelia turned around in the doorframe. "Yeah, sweetie?"

"When Dad come home, is the angel gonna leaves him alone?" Connor asked innocently.

"What?" Cordelia stood there for a moment, dumbfounded. She had no idea what Connor was talking about. "What angel? What are you talking about, Connor?"

"Dad said." Connor said simply.

"What did Dad say?" Cordelia moved back toward Connor, sitting back down on his bed.

"He said the angel keep bothering him. He said right here." Connor touched his own chest, imitating what Angelus had done a few days earlier.

"Well, I am sure the angel will go away then." Cordelia said calmly to Connor, kissing him one more time before standing and leaving his room.

Once outside, Cordelia sank down against the wall; her mind was racing in a million directions. On one hand, her mind kept going back to what the Fang Gang had told her; that Angelus was back. She knew Angelus would complain if he could feel any remains of Angel within him; on the other hand she was trying to be more rational. If it had been Angelus living with her and Connor and Liam right now, he would have killed them all, not offered to go out and get a job to support them. Cordelia sighed, shaking the thoughts from her head as she stood. Angelus couldn't possibly be the vampire sharing an apartment with her and holding the keys to her heart; only Angel had those.

Angelus stood outside the door of the Hyperion Hotel for a moment, gathering himself. He had never found it so hard to waltz in and threaten people before, but now he felt himself weary of it. He blamed that on Angel and the fact that Wolfram and Hart had not removed the soul but instead shoved it deep down instead of him.

He watched out the window for a moment, seeing Buffy, Gunn, Wesley, Fred, and Lorne all gathering a sufficient number of weapons in the middle of the room. He assumed they were planning to use them on him, and that angered the vampire enough that he was ready to go in there and tear out some throats.

Angelus moved swiftly to the door and in one big stride found himself inside of the lobby of the hotel.

"Well, what kind of a party do we have going on in here?" Angelus smirked at the shocked members of Angel Investigations that stood in the middle of the lobby, all staring at him on the landing.

"What are you doing here?" Buffy asked.

"Well, little girl, the world works in crazy ways…but here I am." Angelus threw his arms out and smiled smugly at the Slayer.

"And there you'll stay." Wesley pointed a crossbow at Angelus, indicating the vampire was not welcome another step into the hotel.

"Relax, Wes." Angelus told him. "I'm not going to kill you…_yet_."

"Then what the hell do you want?" Gunn asked.

"Just here to let you know that if any of you come anywhere near Cordelia or my sons I will rip you to pieces, slowly and steadily. It will be an experience for both of us." Angelus smirked, and then turned nonchalantly to the door. "See you around." He moved out the door.

"What the hell was that about?" Lorne asked.

"We should go after him." Gunn made a move.

"No." Wesley pulled Gunn by the arm, stopping the man. "He didn't attack us."

"And why was that?" Fred ask, seemingly confused. "Why didn't he try to kill us all?"

"Maybe Angel is in there, deep." Lorne suggested.

"Maybe." Wesley nodded.

"But why threaten us about trying to save Cordelia, Connor, and Liam?" Fred asked. "Why not just kill us…or kill them for that matter?"

"Because he is a vampire." Wesley stated.

"Exactly why we should be going after him and killing him." Gunn said.

Wesley shook his head. "He won't hurt Cordelia, or Liam or Connor."

"Say what?" Gunn asked.

"He is a vampire. By his nature he is inclined to protect his own blood." Wesley explained. "And his blood is mixed with Cordelia's through Liam. He won't hurt her or the children."

"I don't believe it." Buffy shook her head. "I know Angelus…"

"And I know vampires." Wesley cut her off. "I've studied them for years. Angelus may be extremely cruel but he is not unpredictable."

"So what are you saying?" Fred asked. "That Cordelia, Connor, and Liam are safe?"

"Heavens no." Wesley said quickly. "Vampires are jealous and brutal by nature. If Angelus was to feel betrayed by Cordelia there is a good chance that he would kill her or his son's. After all, he is the only one under that roof without a soul. I can't guess how long he can manage with that, plus he clearly has Cordelia fooled so how much longer can he keep up the lie that he is Angel?"

"So…Cordy isn't safe?" Gunn was now confused.

"For the time being she is; but its only a matter of time." Wesley concluded.

"So what do we do?" Gunn asked.

"We get Angel back." Wesley stated.

"Wait, what?" Buffy looked at Wesley. "We have no idea where is soul is, or what Wolfram and Hart did to him?"

"But now we know no one is in immediate danger so we have the time to figure it out." Wesley stated, moving swiftly to his office. He then began grabbing any books he knew would possibly help him with re-ensouling someone off the shelves and tossing them into a pile on his desk. He was determined to get Angel back.

Cordelia flopped herself down on the couch, rubbing her temples with both hands as she threw down Connor's small jacket beside her. She had cleaned up the entire living room once she had gotten Liam and Connor to bed, waiting for whom she thought was Angel to return from his "job hunt". She couldn't help it; she felt the need to question him about what Connor had said earlier.

Suddenly, the door to the hotel opened and Angelus strode in. He slowed down when he saw Cordelia on the couch.

"Didn't think you'd be up." Angelus said, admiring the seer. She was beautiful, even when she was tired. He would not argue with Angel on that one.

"How did the job hunt go?" Cordelia leaned back on the couch.

"Uh…" Angelus didn't know what to say, he hadn't exactly found a job. "Well…I'll try again next week."

Cordelia stood, sighing. "You didn't find anything?"

Angelus shrugged his shoulders. "Was harder than I thought it would be."

Cordelia nodded, confused. The vampire in front of her hand been gone for over five hours; how had he not found a job? "Why were you out so long?"

Angelus didn't like playing twenty-one questions with Cordelia, and he was growing annoyed by her interrogation. "Just was."

Cordelia moved past him, scrunching her face up as she inhaled the air around the vampire. "You wreak of smoke and stale beer. Where the hell were you?"

"I went out, okay?" Angelus was now really annoyed. How dare she question him! He had stopped off at a local bar for a few beers after he had dealt with the Fang Gang as a small reward to himself and he didn't like being questioned for it.

Cordelia took in the vampire's voice and shook her head. He wasn't the same; he wasn't the Angel she remembered, not the man she had fallen in love with. "What has happened to you?"

"Nothing." Angelus clenched his jaw, pushing past her and making his way to the bedroom. He did not want to blow a fuse and do something he would regret, like smashing in her skull.

"Angel, talk to me." Cordelia followed after him into the bedroom. "What's bothering you?"

Angelus stopped short, turning around in the doorframe of the bedroom to face Cordelia. "Nothing! Nothing is wrong with me!"

Cordelia remained silent for a moment, watching Angelus turn his back to her. Then she spoke again. "It's him, isn't it?" She asked, her voice almost a whisper.

"Who?" Angelus was somewhat calmer now, and turned back to face Cordelia.

"Angelus." Cordelia said simply. "You can feel him, can't you?"

Angelus raised an eyebrow, unsure of what Cordelia was saying and panicked that she may have figured out that he was in fact Angelus. "What do you mean?"

"Connor…he said something earlier." Cordelia looked down at Connor's jacket from the living room that was in her hands for some reason. "He said you told him you could feel an angel clawing at you deep down. I figured he was confused…that maybe you meant you could feel Angelus?"

Angelus was relieved. It was evident to him that Cordelia, regardless of how many warning signs she had gotten, wanted to believe so badly that he was Angel and not who he actually was. She made up a story and excuse for what he had said to Connor before he could even invent a lie. She just really wanted her Angel back.

Angelus nodded slowly to Cordelia's question. "Sometimes I feel him." And he did; except he felt Angel deep down, the soul burning for its release to the surface; something Angelus could not give in to.

"I figured." Cordelia nodded.

"It's because of all the talk." Angelus continued, formulating a full-proof lie. "Everyone has been talking about Angelus, and accusing me of being him; I think it's getting to me."

Cordelia nodded again. It made sense. "You know I am here…if you need to talk."

Angelus smirked at her, eyeing her up and down. If he had a choice, talking would be the last thing he would do to her. He moved closer to her. "I don't want to talk."

Cordelia looked up at Angelus, and before she could register the lack of the souled-glimmer in his eyes, he had pulled her in for a long, passionate kiss. Angelus knew, as Cordelia's tongue reacted to his, that he was now in complete control.


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 30**

Angelus stood over the sink, running water over his face. It was a little after midnight and Cordelia had already fallen asleep. He had laid next to her, watching her chest rise and fall with breath when suddenly he felt it. The pulling, deep down, as he watched Cordelia sleep; Angel. The soul was fighting Angelus to get back next to Cordelia's side, and that made Angelus even more jealous and determined to make sure Angel never made his way back. Angelus would never give Cordelia up to his soul.

Once Angelus had calmed himself down, he decided he couldn't stay in the house anymore. He needed to think; he needed to figure out a way to get rid of the soul.

Angelus made his way out of the bathroom and too the door when he heard her voice.

"Angel?" Cordelia called out quietly into the dark room.

Angelus cringed. He hated being called Angel, still he knew he had to respond. "Yeah?"

"Where are you going?" Cordelia asked.

Angelus could tell she had still not opened her eyes. She must have heard him, or her demon powers had allowed her to sense his departure. "I need to go out. For a walk."

"Are you okay?" Cordelia sounded more awake now.

Before Angelus could formulate an answer, his voice started speaking. "I need to get away from you."

"What?" Cordelia was now wide awake, confused.

Angelus was just as confused. He had not said that, he had not even thought those words; they were Angel's words. Angelus could feel it, the soul deep inside of him was fighting for the woman he loved; Angel wanted Cordelia to get away from Angelus.

"I…uh…I said I will check on the boys for you…before I leave." He covered up what Angel had said, furious at his soul. "I'll be back in a few hours, Cordy."

"Okay. Be careful." Cordelia flopped back down on her pillow, still heavy with sleep. She just assumed, because she was tired, she had heard the vampire wrong.

Angelus made his way out of the bedroom and curse at his soul. "Angel, she's mine now. You had your chance and you lost it. It's over now, don't try that crap again."

When Angelus got no response from his inner soul he seemed satisfied and made his way out the door. Still concerned with that had happened earlier that night and a few minutes ago regarding his soul he really felt the need to wind down. He turned down the hall and headed straight for the bar, not noticing the person crouching down by the door to Cordelia's apartment, Gunn.

Once Angelus was out of sight, Gunn leaned against Cordelia's door, dialing his phone. After a few rings, Wesley answered the hotel phone.

"Hey Wes, it's me…" Gunn said into the phone. "Yeah…he left…okay I'll follow…yeah…bye." Gunn closed the cell phone in his hand and stood, taking a deep breath. Wesley had instructed him to follow Angelus and that's what Gunn was about to do. He knew how potentially dangerous it was, but he also knew he owed it to Angel to keep his family and friend's safe. He sighed, moving down the hall in the direction Angelus had gone.

Wesley hung the phone up and looked up at the group starring back at him in the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel. Fred, Lorne, and Buffy all stood on the other side of the counter, waiting for Wesley to explain the phone call he had just received.

"That was Gunn." Wesley said what the group already knew.

"And…?" Fred pressed.

"And, Angelus left the apartment." Wesley moved to the weapons closet, taking two stakes out and tossing them at Buffy.

Buffy looked down at the weapons in her hands. "What are these for?"

"You are going to meet up with Gunn. I want you two to follow Angelus and capture him. He needs to be brought back here." Wesley explained.

"What?" Buffy was shocked. "How is that a good plan?"

"I need him here so I can get his soul back." Wesley said. "Gunn and I set that cage up downstairs for a reason. Get him here, and put him in it."

"Wesley…sugar…I'm not trying to be the Debby-Downer, but we don't even know how to get Angel's soul back yet." Lorne reminded the ex-watcher.

"I know." Wesley nodded. "But while Buffy and Gunn are out getting Angelus I am going to go figure the soul thing out."

"How?" Fred was curious.

"I have resources." Wesley said simply. He did not want to tell Fred or Lorne his resource was Wolfram and Hart and his plan was to just barge in there and hope Lilah would somehow be willing to help him. "Anyway, Fred and Lorne, I want you to go over to Cordelia's. We know Angelus isn't there now, so maybe you can talk her into getting out of there…"

"Bad idea." Fred said simply. "Because Cordelia isn't going to listen."

"I second that." Lorne agreed with Fred. "She won't even let us near that apartment, let alone in the front door of it."

"Just try." Wesley told them. "Do it for Connor and Liam…and Angel. You know he wouldn't want her or the children around Angelus."

After a beat, Lorne and Fred nodded.

"Okay. Fine." Lorne said. "We will try."

Wesley looked at Buffy. "Are you in this or not?"

After a minute, Buffy sighed. "Yeah. I am…I guess. But how are we supposed to actually get Angelus back here. He is a decent fight for me…"

"Gunn has a tranquilizer with him." Wesley explained. "All you need to do is distract Angelus long enough so that Gunn has a clear shot."

Buffy nodded. "Okay."

"Good." Wesley seemed satisfied that everyone was agreeing to his plan. It was clear they all wanted Angel back, even Buffy. If she didn't want her ex-lover back, she would not be offering to help them right now. And as much as she drove them crazy, Wesley knew they needed the Slayer right now; they needed her to get their Champion back.

Lilah and Gavin sat in Lilah's office. For once they were being civil to one another, going over a few case files, trying to see what their next project would be, since they assumed at this point the Fang Gang was no longer an issue.

"I wonder how long he tortured them before he killed them." Gavin spoke up.

"What?" Lilah asked, kicking her heels off and leaning her feet on her desk. "You mean how long Angelus tortured Angel Inc.?"

Gavin nodded. "Yeah."

Lilah shrugged. "Who cares? The point is he killed them."

"Well, we think." Gavin said. They were not exactly sure if the Fang Gang was dead yet, neither had stuck around to see what Angelus did.

"Either way…if they aren't dead, they will be dead soon enough." Lilah grinned, looking back down at her paperwork.

"Is that so?" Wesley entered the room by wiping a bloody knuckle off with a rag.

Lilah looked past Wesley to see her two security guards both on the floor, unconscious. Clearly Wesley had done a number on them. She stood, rolling her eyes. "Remind me to get better security."

"It wasn't very hard to get in here." Wesley told her. "After all, I am human and not on your top ten most wanted list in this company."

"Not yet you aren't." Lilah smirked.

"I'll be looking forward to see my name on that board when the time comes." Wesley answered back.

"Why aren't you dead?" Gavin asked.

"Because Angelus never killed me." Wesley said simply. "He hasn't killed any of us to be honest with you."

"We saw him go into the hotel." Lilah said.

"Well if you had hung around a few more minute you would have seen him leave the hotel." Wesley said. "All he did was threaten us."

"Threaten?" Lilah raised an eyebrow. That didn't sound like Angelus.

"Yes." Wesley nodded. "It seems Angelus is more concerned with keeping Cordelia and his children all to himself, rather than the mass murdering that used to fill him with such delight."

"Really?" Lilah was intrigued.

"Yes." Wesley said. "Care to tell me why?"

"Why what?" Gavin asked.

"Gavin, shut up." Lilah told the other lawyer. Sure, at times they got along, but most of the time she hated him. She looked back at Wesley. "How would we know?"

"Well…" Wesley stepped into the room, nonchalantly. "You know what happened to Angel's soul…and I have a feeling_ that _has something to do with the way Angelus has been acting."

"Nothing _happened_ to his soul." Lilah told Wesley. "It's just not in charge anymore."

Wesley raised an eyebrow. "It was not extracted?"

"Extracted?" Lilah asked. "I don't think so. I mean, we hired a guy, he worked some mojo, and stuffed Angel's soul deep down at the bottom of that vampire cookie-jar."

"So the soul is still inside of Angelus, just buried deep?" Wesley was putting the pieces together.

"Just like Angelus used to be buried in Angel." Lilah smirked, not understanding how valuable the information she had just given Wesley was.

Wesley nodded slowly. "Thank you." And with that he turned, making his way back out of the lawyer's office. Lilah had helped him out tremendously without even realizing it. For one, if Angel's soul was inside of Angelus, then it would be much easier for the Fang Gang to get him back; but the other thing that relieved Wesley somewhat was that if Angel was buried in Angelus then Angelus could feel the soul, just like Angel could feel his demon. Wesley knew now that Angel being inside of Angelus was the only reason that Cordelia, Connor, and Liam were safe. No matter what, those three meant far too much to Angel for him to ever let Angelus hurt them. Even if the soul did not have much power, it had enough to keep Cordelia, Connor, and Liam safe.

Cordelia was still asleep when she heard a knock on the front door of her apartment. She sat up, looking over at the clock to see it was only three in the morning. Her mind immediately panicked. Who would be knocking on her door at that hour unless it was someone who wanted her dead or someone who needed her. Since there were only three people who really needed her and two of them were asleep in the room next door, and Angel was out, Cordelia assumed the knock at the front door was from someone who wanted to harm her or her children. She quickly jumped out of bed and made her way into Liam and Connor's bedroom, just as she saw the front door to her apartment open.

"Damn it, Angel." Cordelia cursed under her breath. "Way to leave the front door opened." She quickly moved to Connor's bed, rustling the child from his sleep.

"Ma?" Connor wiped his sleepy eyes.

"Yeah, baby." Cordelia whispered. "Mommy needs you to get up." She wanted to remain calm for Connor, but she needed him to listen to her. She planned on taking him and Liam and bolting out the door the first chance she got.

Connor was too tired to argue so he complied, slowly getting out of his bed.

Cordelia then moved to Liam's crib, hoping not to disturb the baby from sleep, she lifted her son gently. The three month old did not, however, even twitch a muscle. He was a heavy sleeper and Cordelia was thankful for that.

"Momma?" Connor asked.

Cordelia turned around, grabbing Connor and placing him on her hip while balancing Liam in the other arm. "Mommy needs you to be really quiet, Connor. Okay?"

"Kay." Connor whispered, putting his head down on her shoulder and sucking his thumb.

Cordelia then moved slowly to the door, listening to hear the intruders in her house. She heard footsteps and held her breath.

"Cordelia?" Fred's familiar voice called out.

"Fred!!" Connor practically jumped out of Cordelia's arms, swinging his bedroom door opened and running into the living room, where Lorne and Fred were standing. He jumped onto Fred's leg, hugging her tightly. He had missed his aunt.

"Hey Connor." Fred was happy to see the two year old.

A minute later, Cordelia stepped out into the living room, with a now awake but quiet Liam in her arms. "Get out."

"Cordelia…" Fred started.

"No." Cordelia cut her off. "Get out."

"Sweetcakes, we just need to talk to you…" Lorne tried.

"I don't want to talk." Cordelia told them. Her voice was extremely cold; it sent chills up both Fred and Lorne's spin. "It's three in the morning, you barge into my house. I told you all, we are done."

"Angelus is a danger to you." Fred said. "You need to get out of here."

"_Angel_." Cordelia corrected Fred, not knowing that she was actually the one that was wrong. "Angel is not a danger to me or our family."

"Cordelia, we have no idea why he is trying to lie to you, but you have got to have noticed some things aren't right with him." Lorne said.

"Angel has been through a lot, but it's still Angel, and I love him. If you guys can't accept that then it's too bad." Cordelia said.

Lorne shook his head. "We know you love him, Cordy. We are happy for that, but it's not Angel right now. You love Angel, you don't love Angelus."

"Angelus is a part of Angel." Cordelia said simply. "But he is not the part that I am living with. Believe me, I know Angelus."

"Then you know that the vampire sharing this apartment with you is Angelus." Fred said.

"Get out." Cordelia repeated herself. She wanted no more part in this conversation.

Fred went to say something, but Lorne stopped her, grabbing her shoulder and shaking his head. He then bent down and patted Connor on the head. "Take care of your Mommy for us, big guy."

"You not staying to play?" Connor seemed disappointed.

Lorne looked back up at Cordelia and then smiled back at Connor. "Not tonight, sweetie." He then stood, motioning for Fred to follow him out of the apartment.

Cordelia watched as her former family walked out of her apartment. Her emotions were all mixed up and she did not know which way was up anymore. She just knew one thing, there was no way she was living with Angelus. She loved the vampire who shared her bed far too much for him to be a mass murder, and he was far too kind to her and his children to be a psychopath. Cordelia just chalked it up to none of the Fang Gang actually ever having experience with Angelus. She had met Angelus, fought Angelus, and watched Angelus torture many people close to her back in Sunnydale. The vampire she was living with now was far from that evil, sadistic monster.

Gunn tried not to look suspicious as he paced up and down the same city block, but he knew that would be kind of hard considering it was three in the morning. Lucky for him, Angelus had picked a bad part of town to go to the bar so even Gunn's activities were overlooked.

Gunn check his watch, fidgeting his hands and sighing. Buffy was supposed to have met him already. He had called her to tell her where he was, after he was sure Angelus had settled himself in the bar across the street.

Finally, Gunn heard footsteps moving rapidly towards him. Hoping they were Buffy's, but not willing to take any chances, Gunn pulled the stake out of his back pocket. He held his breath and waited for the figure to make their way around the corner.

Gunn let out a breath of relief as Buffy turned the corner, practically running into him.

"Sorry I am late." Buffy said simply.

Gunn nodded. "Let's just get working here."

"Where is he?" Buffy looked around for the vampire had loved and seemingly lost.

"Angelus is across the street." Gunn pointed to a beat up building, with a small sign above a dirty door that said BAR.

"Drinking?" Buffy raised an eyebrow.

Gunn nodded. "Who knows what though. It's a demon bar."

"They have those?" Buffy was impressed.

Gunn just raised an eyebrow at her before shaking his head. "We need to get in there and get him out."

"Easy." Buffy said simply. "He hates us, he will come after us."

"So the plan is to just let him know we are there and hope no one else in there kills us?" Gunn said sarcastically. To him, the Slayer's plan was dumb.

"Basically." Buffy quickly made her way across the street before Gunn could object, forcing him to follow her.

Gunn and Buffy entered the bar to be greeted with a cloud of smoke and the smell of blood and booze. They scanned the place and realized it was all demons and vampires, lurking in every corner of the bar.

"Well, we stick out like sore thumbs…" Gunn whispered to Buffy.

"Good…makes this easier." Buffy said before grabbing a vampire and slamming his head against the bar a few times to get everyone's attention. Once all the demons and vampires were looking up at her and Gunn she smiled. "Okay, now that I have your attention I just want to make a quick announcement." All the demons stared at the slayer. "I am looking for Angelus."

"And I could have sworn you learned your lesson last time we met, little girl." Angelus seemed to come out of nowhere as he made his way across the bar.

"I must have forgotten." Buffy stayed calm as Angelus approached her and Gunn. "Can we take this out on the street?"

"We could…" Angelus nodded, but then, before anyone could react, he knocked Gunn right across the face. "But this is so much more fun."

Buffy lunged at Angelus, but he deflected her into the bar. She bounced back and gave him two kicks to the gut as Gunn gathered himself back up. Gunn then lunged at Angelus from behind, knocking the vampire into the bar, and catching Angelus' eyebrow, splitting it open.

Angelus, in turn, stood, his game face on. "You're going to pay for that." He lunged at Gunn, but Buffy grabbed the vampire, tossing him through the door and onto the street.

Angelus rolled through the broken glass from the door, feeling the glass cut and jab him. He laid still on the ground for a moment as Buffy and Gunn stepped out onto the street, with the crowd of demons forming in the door behind them but none daring to come out and help Angelus.

"You done, deadboy?" Gunn smirked, thinking Angelus had had enough.

With that, Angelus quickly stood, his game face still on as he turned toward Gunn and Buffy. "Not even close." Before Gunn could react, Angelus took him and swung him into the lightpost, knocking the man to the ground. He then turned to Buffy. "You ready to go or what, _lover_?"

"Last time we did this, I sent you to hell." Buffy shot back.

Angelus just smiled, putting his human visage on. He could see instantly, his human face effected Buffy. It made him more like Angel, harder to want to kill. "Actually, last time we did this was at Wolfram and Hart, and I kicked your ass." He reminded her.

"Well, we are even then." Buffy joked, pulling out her stake.

Angelus laughed at the wooden block in the Slayer's hand. "You really think you have it in you to kill me?"

"Damn right I do." Buffy told him.

"Well then…do it." Angelus could not control himself as he felt his body fall to his knees. He looked down and the next time he looked up at the Slayer, Buffy knew she wasn't staring at Angelus. It was Angel's eyes, Angel's sad eyes. "Buffy! Please, do it! Kill him! Kill me! Do it!"

"Angel?" Buffy almost dropped her stake.

"Buffy…please." Angel pleaded again, dropping his head.

Buffy moved to Angel's side, confused and shocked. She put a hand on his shoulder to help him up. "Angel?"

The vampire's head snapped up, Angelus' grin dancing back on his face. "Angel has left for the moment." Angelus lunged at Buffy, pinning her up against the wall, and holding her wrist to the hand her stake was held in. "I guess I win again." He pushed her harder against the wall and could feel her wrist cracking in his grasp.

"Where is Angel?"." Buffy could feel her wrist breaking as well, but she could not give up. If she did she knew she was dead.

"Angel comes and goes…but this was his last appearance." Angelus seemed to be trying to reassure himself of that more than Buffy. He could feel Angel deep down and he knew it wasn't good that his souled counter-part kept popping up. Angelus was afraid next time he would lose control He focused back on the Slayer. "Now…how about you make this easy for me and just lean your neck to the side so I can take a nice bite?"

Buffy stared the vampire straight in the eye, and instead of doing what he asked, she used all her might and plunged the stake into the side of Angelus' neck, causing the vampire to stumble back in pain and shock. Once she was released she slide down the wall, holding her damaged wrist.

"Damn it…" Angelus ripped the wood from his neck, exposing a gaping hole. Thank god he did not need to breath, he decided. He held his wound and clenched his jaw at Buffy. "I'll kill you for this…but not tonight."

Before Buffy could say another word, Angelus had taken off, still holding tight to his wound. Buffy scrambled over to Gunn shaking the man. "Gunn?"

"I'm okay." Gunn held his head, sitting up. "What happened?"

"Angel is in there. He is deep down, but he is there." Buffy said.

"I heard." Gunn nodded, remembering the small amount of begging the vampire had just done. Angel was there, and he wanted them to take care of Angelus. "We need to get back to the hotel."

"Yeah." Buffy nodded, trying to help Gunn up with her good wrist. Angelus had done a number on her other one and she was sure something had cracked in there. She examined her wrist as she and Gunn walked back to the hotel; it was already black and blue and very swollen.

Wesley made his way back into the hotel through the basement. He was anxious to tell the members of the Fang Gang all of the information he had gathered from Wolfram and Hart. He was also hopeful to find Cordelia there with Connor and Liam. He hoped that Lorne and Fred could get her to listen to him.

Wesley moved up the stairs and into the lobby to find Fred and Lorne sitting at the counter with sad looks on their faces.

"Hey." Wesley said.

Fred nearly jumped off her chair. "Why did you come up the basement?"

"Didn't want to draw attention leaving Wolfram and Hart." Wesley explained, glancing around the room. "Where is Cordelia?"

Lorne shook his head. "The princess wanted no part of us. Wouldn't listen to a word we said."

Wesley nodded. He had been hopeful but not stupid; he knew that there was a slim chance Cordelia would be back at the hotel. "We will keep trying with her then."

"That's it? We just let her stay in that apartment with Angelus and hope he doesn't rip her apart?" Fred was confused.

"Angelus might be on his way back here with Buffy and Gunn." Wesley reminded them.

"Don't count on it." Gunn stumbled through the door, badly bruised and beaten as an equally hurt Buffy followed him.

"Oh Gunn! What happened?" Fred moved swiftly around the counter, helping Gunn to the couch as Buffy followed, slumping down across from the spot Gunn sat.

"Lorne, go get some ice?" Wesley looked to Lorne who nodded and made his way into the kitchen. Wesley then turned to Buffy and Gunn. "What happened?"

"We found Angelus." Gunn said.

"Then we lost him." Buffy added, nodding at Lorne who handed her and Gunn ice packs.

"He beat you, I guess." Lorne observed.

"We took a few good hits at him." Gunn said. "Just not enough. He stumbled off."

Wesley nodded. "Well, the fact that he didn't kill you only confirms what I learned at Wolfram and Hart."

"What?" Fred looked up at Wesley for an explanation.

"I went to Lilah and Gavin. Asked them where Angel's soul was…" Wesley started.

"Its inside of Angels." Buffy cut Wesley off.

Wesley looked down at Buffy, raising an eyebrow, "How did you know?"

"When we were fighting." Buffy explained. "Angel came through. He told me to kill him…then he was gone."

Wesley nodded. "Angel is inside of Angelus. Buried deep, but in there."

"So there is a chance we can get him back then?" Fred was hopeful.

"Or a chance he is on his way back." Lorne said. "If he is surfacing. That means Angel is fighting for it. He wants to get back."

"He may need some help." Wesley said. "But I believe we can get Angel back. We know where he is now."

"It's a start." Gunn sighed. "Not a huge one, but better than none."

"We need to figure out how to bring Angel to the surface and keep him here." Wesley said. "Fred come with me. I may need some help." He moved to his office, motioning for Fred to follow him. He needed to try and contact a few people and consult a few books before they tried anything to get Angel back. He needed to be sure they were not going to put Cordelia, Connor, Liam, or anyone else in danger. That was what was most important right now.

Angelus fumbled at the front door to the apartment he shared with Cordelia and his sons. He was badly hurt, his face a mess from it being slammed into the bar and then from being thrown through the glass door. He was still picking little pieces of glass out of his skin all the way back to the apartment. Sure, he knew he had equally hurt Buffy and Gunn but he was disappointed. Angel had held him back, not allowed him to fight at full strength, and that was why he had not been able to kill either of them, or defend himself as well. It was as if Angel wanted him dead.

Before Angelus entered the apartment, he spoke out loud to the soul deep within him. "Angel, its over. I'm back and going nowhere, understand? Let it go or I will kill your children and Cordelia."

Angelus felt that his threat would not go unheeded by Angel so he then made his way into the apartment, practically falling through the door. He needed to be patched up badly and get some blood in him.

He moved to the kitchen, trying to remain quiet since he knew it was rather early, but then the lights flicked on behind him.

"Angel?" Cordelia's voice filled the kitchen.

Angelus turned toward her and before he could get a word out she was all over him.

"My God!" Cordelia ran her hands over Angel's face, feeling all the cuts and blood on her own fingertips. She could easily tell he was hurt badly. "What happened to you?"

"I am okay." Angelus said. "Just a couple scratches." He may have not had the soul, but like Angel he too hated to see Cordelia panicked or worried.

"Sit down." Cordelia instructed him as she moved him to the couch and then made her way down the hall to the closet.

Angelus leaned back into the couch, as he heard Cordelia fumble through the closet, clearly looking for bandages to clean him up with. Angelus opened his eyes a second later to see Connor staring up at him. "Connor? Shouldn't you be in bed?"

Connor did not reply. True, it was early, but he had already had a crazy morning with Fred and Lorne stopping by. Instead, the two and a half year old pointed to the gashes on Angelus' face. "Did the angel do that to yous?"

Angelus gave a relaxed grin to Connor. The child made sense, even though Buffy and Gunn had attacked him, Angel had stopped Angelus from hurting them like he wanted to and defending himself. In a sense, Angel was the reason Angelus was so wounded. Before Angelus could enter, however, Cordelia was back in the living room.

"Connor, go play in your room right now." Cordelia ordered her son.

"Why?" Connor questioned.

"Because I said so. Make sure Liam is being good in there too. Okay?" Cordelia did not want Connor to see who she thought was Angel so badly beaten.

"Kay." Connor said, glancing at Angelus one more time before moving to his room.

Cordelia then sat down next to Angelus, gently patting the wounds on his face and arms. "What happened?"

"Buffy." Angelus mumbled.

"What?" Cordelia stopped patting his face. "She did this to you?" Cordelia was furious, she was sick of the Fang Gang messing around with her life and her family. She decided she wasn't even going to tell the vampire next to her about the little visit that she, Connor, and Liam had gotten earlier from Fred and Lorne.

"She…her and Gunn." Angelus said. "They came after me." He knew by telling Cordelia this, she would only side with him more, against her friends. "Threw me through a door."

"Why?" Cordelia was shocked.

Angelus shrugged. "I don't know."

"_Because they want you dead."_ Angel's voice sat loudly in the back of Angelus mind.

"Shut up." Angelus answered out-loud to Angel.

"What?" Cordelia looked up at Angelus, confused.

"Nothing." Angelus wanted to rip Angel apart for that but he knew that would be unrealistic, so instead he did something he knew would get his soul even angrier. He cupped Cordelia's cheek in his hand and pulled her in for a kiss. "I won't let them take me from you." He said when they broke apart.

Cordelia smiled gently at Angelus, still unable to detect it was Angel. For having known Angel so long, she was failing him miserably right now. "We need to get out of here."

"What do you mean?" Angelus questioned.

"I mean out of Los Angeles. We have no reason to stay." Cordelia told him. She just wanted to get her family away from anyone who wanted to harm them.

Angelus smiled, he liked the idea of that. He wanted to be as far from the Fang Gang and Buffy as possible. "Where do you want to go?"

"Anywhere." Cordelia told him as she finished cleaning up the cut above his eye. "I just want to get away from here. I don't want them to bother us anymore."

"We can't leave." Angelus suddenly found himself saying. "You need to stay here. L.A. has the only people who can help you." Angelus could not control the words coming out of his mouth. Angel, for a split second had surfaced. "The hotel…"

Angelus had come back in charge, shoving Angel deep down and cursing the soul.

"The hotel what?" Cordelia was confused.

"Nothing…the hotel…I mean we need to get away from it." Angelus tried to correct what Angel had said to make it work for him. "Maybe we don't have to leave L.A., but maybe we can move somewhere where the hotel doesn't know where we are."

Cordelia nodded, it made sense. Before she could say another word though, Liam's cries filled he apartment. She sighed, standing. "Looks like its breakfast time for him."

Angelus smiled at Cordelia and watched her leave the room. Once she was gone, Angelus spoke to Angel. "Angel…what did I say? Let it go! She is mine." He growled.

"_She will never be yours."_ Angel responded in Angelus' head.

"She already is." Angelus told him, with a smirk.

"_Do you think she is stupid? She will figure it out. She will know you aren't me."_ Angel responded.

"She hasn't yet." Angelus told him.

"_But she will. And she will kill you."_ Angel's voice continued on in Angelus' head.

"I'll just have to kill her first then, won't I?" Angelus threatened.

"_Too bad you can't." _Angel seemed to almost laugh._ "I feel what you feel, you care about her. You can't hurt her, but you can't love her."_

"And you will never get the chance to even tell her you love her." Angelus smirked back. "Because you are buried deep, just like I was. You're done here, Angel. Let it go."

"_I can't."_ Angel responded.

"Then I'll just have to figure out a way to make sure you do." Angelus decided. He had enough of the soul pestering him. It was time to rid himself of Angel once and for all. He just needed to find the right person to help him do it.

Lilah pounded her fist hard on her desk before pacing around her office a few times while Gavin remained quiet in the chair across her desk, watching the other lawyer make her way around her office. She had called him in there and still not told him why, he was starting to get a little bored.

Finally, Gavin spoke up. "What did you call me for?"

"We messed up." Lilah said finally.

"What do you mean?" Gavin asked.

"I mean with Angel's soul." Lilah said. "We shoved it inside Angelus, not thinking it would effect him, but it is."

"What?" Gavin raised an eyebrow. He was confused.

"Angelus can feel the soul inside of him. Angel must still have some pull, that's why Angelus hasn't really killed any of the people we want him to. Angel must be stopping him, controlling him to some extent to leave the people he cares about alone." Lilah explained.

Gavin nodded, he understood now. "So what do we do?"

"We get rid of the soul; get it out of him, for good." Lilah said simply, knowing her plan was easier said than done. Still, if they wanted to get rid of the Fang Gang and get a hold of Cordelia, Connor, and Liam, they needed to get Angelus back full strength, without a hint of soul.


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 31**

Angelus sat up in the bed he shared with Cordelia. It had been almost a week since Buffy and Gunn had attacked him and he was just now almost fully healed. His wounds had been a lot worse than he had first though, no thanks to Angel not allowing him to fight with his full potential, and he was glad Cordelia had been around to nurse him back to health.

Angelus glanced around the room to find no sight of Cordelia, Connor, or Liam. He wondered where they had gone since the apartment seemed quiet but he was kind of glad for the break. He needed to stretch out a little and Cordelia had barely let him out of bed since the night he had gotten attacked.

Angelus moved to the bedroom door and out into the apartment to find it empty.

"_She took the boys out into the sun."_ Angel's voice rang in Angelus' head. _"Where you can't follow."_

"You wouldn't be able to follow her either." Angelus smirked back at the voice in his head as he moved into the kitchen to fill himself a cup of blood.

"_She will figure it out and then she will kill you."_ Angel's voice continued.

"She will kill us both." Angelus seemed unfazed.

"_You're a coward. You can't even tell her who you are. You know she won't accept it."_ Angel taunted.

Angelus slammed his fist on the counter. "She hardly accepted you! You're just as much a vampire as I am except you avoid your true nature!"

"_Just like you are doing now to keep her. You know she can't accept you!"_ Angel continued, knowing he was angering Angelus.

"I am done with you!" Angelus threatened. "I am going to Wolfram and Hart, I am going to let them fix this and get rid of you for good!"

Before Angel could respond, the front door of the apartment opened and Connor came running in giggling, followed by Cordelia who was carrying Liam.

"Dad! You up!" Connor seemed excited to see the vampire in the kitchen.

"Hey." Angelus smiled at his son, the son who looked more like Darla now then ever before. "Where did you go?"

"Mommy taked us to the park." Connor told Angelus.

"I took you, Connor. Took." Cordelia stepped into the kitchen, glancing at Angelus with a concerned smile. "You should be in bed."

"I…actually…I feel okay." Angelus told her. "I am going to run out and do a few things."

"What?" Cordelia raised an eyebrow.

"I've been stuck in here a week, Cordy." Angelus told her. "I need to get out." Truthfully, he needed to get over to Wolfram and Hart. He had enough of Angel playing with his mind; he wanted his soul gone.

"It's sunny out." Cordelia reminded him. She was just worried, he was still injured.

"Sewers…" Angelus told her, knowing her concern. "I'll be fine." He reassured her with a kiss on the cheek before moving to grab a black long sleeve shirt and black pants off the couch.

Angelus threw his clothes on in the living room and was out the door without another word, leaving Cordelia a little confused on his sudden rush for the door. Something did not seem right about him, but she assumed that was because he had nearly been killed a week earlier.

Wesley had found everything he needed in order to resurrect Angel's soul from deep within Angelus. It had taken him a few phone calls, library visits, threats, and day, but he had managed to obtain the one spell that would bring Angel back to them. Now, all he needed was to get Angelus.

"Wesley, are you ready yet?" Fred popped her head into his office. "Everyone is outside waiting."

Wesley nodded, gathering a few books and following Fred out into the lobby where he found Buffy, Gunn, and Lorne sitting around. Gunn and Buffy's wounds had nearly healed from their encounter with Angelus, and both were ready to get back at the vicious vampire.

"So what's the plan, Wes?" Gunn asked the ex-watcher.

"Did you figure out a way to get Angel back?" Buffy added on.

Wesley nodded at the Slayer. "I have. It's a little more complex then I had anticipated…"

"What do you mean?" Buffy cut him off.

"The spell." Wesley explained. "I have never done one quite like it before."

"But you can handle it, right sweetcakes?" Lorne asked, tipping his sea breeze and Wesley. "Because I am not trying to get killed by Mr. Bites-A-Lot over this." Lorne referred to Angelus.

"It will be fine." Wesley tried to reassure them. "I will be able to handle it."

"Okay." Fred nodded, seeming satisfied. "So now what?"

"Now…" Wesley took a deep breath. "Fred, Lorne, and I will gather the supplies needed while Buffy and Gunn make sure the cage in the basement is ready to go for Angelus. Top-notch, no bolt out of place." He looked at Gunn.

Gunn nodded. "We got you, it will be fine. But if we are double checking that cage does that mean…"

Wesley nodded, already knowing what Gunn was going to ask. "We need to go back after Angelus, and this time, we need to bring him back to his hotel."

"And how do we do that?" Buffy asked. "Last time we tried we almost got ripped apart."

"This time we do it together. All of us." Wesley said. "And this time we take him out where he is most vulnerable."

"Where is that?" Fred asked.

Lorne answered for Wesley, "At Cordelia's."

The Fang Gang and Buffy all dropped their heads at the green demon's words, trying their best to avoid eye contact with one another. They all knew what they were about to get themselves into was extremely dangerous. They all knew what Angelus was capable of doing; they all knew they could end up dead. But they also all knew that they needed to do anything and everything they possibly could to get Angel back.

It took Lilah a few days to figure it out, but it eventually came to her and she knew she needed to take care of things as fast as she could. When Wesley had first approached her about the subject of Angel's soul, she did not understand why he seemed pleased to know it was shoved deep inside of Angelus. Then, after thinking about it for a few days she realized that by shoving the soul into the monster, Wolfram and Hart had only made it easier for Angel Investigations to get Angel's soul back. She also realized having the soul deep within was probably the reason Angelus seemed so docile. This is why she had called Gavin into her office.

Gavin briskly made his way through the double doors of Lilah's office to find her pacing by the window.

"You called?" Gavin seemed slightly annoyed.

Lilah turned to him at the sound of his voice. "We need to get Angelus."

"What do you mean?" Gavin asked.

"I mean, we need to find him, capture him, and get him back here as fast as possible." Lilah said.

"For what?"

"To get Angel's soul out of him."

"I am not following." Gavin said.

Lilah sighed. "Angel's soul is inside of Angelus. That's where we shoved it."

Gavin nodded, he knew this. "So?"

"So we never destroyed the soul, or kept it somewhere safe." Lilah explained. "We made his soul easily accessible. Anyone who has enough willpower can find a way to get his soul back, and bring Angel back."

Gavin nodded. "Okay, so we need to destroy the soul."

"Right." Lilah said. "And we need to do it before Angel Inc. finds a way to re-ensoul their leader. I also have a feeling once we do it Angelus will be back to his raging, sadistic self. I think even the soul buried inside of him is effecting him."

Gavin nodded again. "Maybe. But now we need to get him back."

"We will have to get a team on it. Capture him and bring him in here." Lilah said.

"No need." Angelus' voice filled the office as the vampire seemed to glide through the doors without the slightest noise. "Already here."

Lilah gave Gavin a nervous smile. So far, things had been easier then she thought they would have, especially with Angelus standing in front of her. Now all she needed to do was convince the vampire to give up his soul, which she didn't think would be hard since Angelus was not really using it anyway. Regardless of all of that, however, she still did not feel entirely comfortable with a known killer standing in front of her or Gavin.

Cordelia sat on the couch folding laundry as Liam smiled up at her from his playmat on the rug. Connor had finally gone down for a nap so that left Cordelia and Liam alone. Cordelia smiled down at her son. Liam would be four months old soon; Cordelia could not believe how the time had flew. She felt like she had only been pregnant with Liam a second ago, but she assumed that was because so much had happened since his birth, after all, Angel had come back.

Liam gurgled, catching Cordelia's attention. He was holding a small stuffed dog to his mouth, sucking on its foot.

"What are you doing, sweetie?" Cordelia cooed softly at the infant.

Liam just stared up at Cordelia, and she noticed just how much he looked like Angel. Liam definitely had his father's brow.

Before Cordelia could study Liam anymore, there was a loud knock on the door.

"Damn it…" Cordelia gathered Liam and moved to the door, ready to curse at whoever was on the other side, especially if Connor woke up from the knocking. She slowly opened the door, but quickly tried to shut it when she saw who was on the other side.

Gunn, however, had anticipated that as Cordelia's reaction and wedged his body between the door, forcing it opened to reveal Fred, Wesley, Buffy and Lorne standing behind him.

"I told you to leave us alone!" Cordelia screamed at them. "What don't you get about that?"

"Cordy, please!" Fred tried. "We just want to help."

"Then leave me alone!" Cordelia shouted, trying to slam the door on them, only to have Gunn push harder and the Fang Gang and Buffy to enter the living room.

"Where is he?" Wesley looked around for Angelus.

"Get out!" Cordelia could feel her face getting red with frustration.

"Mommy?" Connor suddenly appeared in the hallway, rubbing his eyes. Clearly, he had just woken up. He looked up to see who was calling all the commotion and smiled when he saw the remaining members of Angel Investigation standing there. He had missed them, his Uncle Gunn in particular because he was always the one willing to play with Connor. "Gunn!"

"Hey little man." Gunn smiled at Connor, he knew they could use Cordelia's son against her if he worked it right, so he gave it his best shot, kneeling down so he was eye level with Connor. "Want to help me out?"

"Connor, don't talk to him." Cordelia instructed her son as she bounced a tense Liam in her arms.

"It's Gunn, Mommy. He good." Connor told Cordelia.

"That's right, he is good." Wesley coaxed.

"Leave my son out of this." Cordelia said through gritted teeth to Wesley.

"He isn't your son." Buffy reminded Cordelia, loving the fact that she knew her words would slightly hurt the seer.

"Connor, where is your Dad?" Gunn asked.

Connor shrugged. "Not here."

"He isn't?" Gunn asked.

"No, he isn't." Cordelia stepped in front of Connor, cutting Gunn off from him. "And even if he was, we wouldn't tell you."

"Cordelia, sweetie, he is dangerous." Lorne tried.

"He is?" Cordelia snorted. "You were the ones who tried to kill him!"

"He tried to kill us!" Buffy said.

"You look fine to me." Cordelia said.

"Look, Cordy, we don't have time for this." Fred started. "We need to know where Angelus is, and we need to know now."

"He isn't Angelus." Cordelia said, not knowing how wrong she was. "You don't know Angelus, what he is capable of. I do."

"So do I." Buffy reminded the seer. "And I know that he isn't going to live much longer. You can help us and tell us where he is or you can let us hunt him down, either way, we aren't letting him roam free like this for long."

"Don't threaten me." Cordelia stepped toe-to-toe with Buffy. "I am part demon, remember? I can take you."

Wesley sensed things were about to get ugly, and he knew Angelus was not in the apartment, so he did not want things to escalate. "Come on, let's go."

"Yeah, go." Cordelia instructed. "And don't ever set foot on this property again, or I will kill you all myself. And if you **ever**, touch Angel again, I will personally hunt you down and torture you to the point that you would have wished_ I_ was Angelus."

Wesley shook his head. They needed to win Cordelia over, but they needed to get Angelus first. Right now, Cordelia was not the top priority, so Wesley could not worry about her threats now. Right now, he knew they needed to find Angelus, so he turned quickly and led the group out of the apartment, leaving a fuming Cordelia behind.

Angelus walked a circle around Lilah's office as Lilah and Gavin stood next to her desk, nervously watching Angelus, but trying their best to act as if nothing was bothering them. The truth, however, was that they were both scared to death of what Angelus could possibly do to them.

After a few laps around the office, Angelus stopped and turned to face the two lawyers, a grin dancing on his face. "So…Angel has got to go."

"Meaning…" Lilah did not want to jump to any conclusions. She knew Angelus needed to feel that he was in control of the situation.

"Meaning I want him gone…out of me…" Angelus looked at Lilah as if she were a five year old child. "Duh."

"Just checking." Lilah gave a tight lipped smile.

"Anyway…" Angelus continued. "I figured since you big bad lawyers were the one to release me, you probably knew a way to get Angel out of me."

"We do." Gavin jumped in.

Angelus glared at Gavin, indicating he was not done talking yet. "What I want to know is…why is Angel still inside me in the first place? Were you too stupid to understand that the soul needed to go somewhere?"

"It was an oversight." Lilah said simply.

"Big time…" Angelus rolled his eyes at her. "I mean…I can feel him deep down, just crawling his way up…and I gotta tell you…I don't like it."

"You can feel him?" Lilah raised an eyebrow.

Angelus nodded. "Like he has some sort of control over me. Not enough to change me but…its annoying."

"He has changed you though." Gavin told Angelus.

Angelus raised an eyebrow, indicating for Gavin to continue.

"He has made you more like him." Gavin told the vampire.

Angelus chuckled. "I am not Angel."

"But you're not Angelus either." Lilah told him.

"Of coarse I am." Angelus seemed to be getting uncomfortable.

"Really?" Lilah questioned. "If you're Angelus why the hell is Angel Inc. still around? Why is Cordelia still alive?"

"Because I care about…" Angelus started his statement about Cordelia and then realized he should not be saying it. He was Angelus, he did not care about anyone.

"You don't care." Lilah told him. "Angel cares. Without Angel inside of you, you get to be the big bad vampire again. No caring. No feelings."

Angelus remained quiet, taking in this new information, and realizing how true it was. The soul, even if it was not in charge, still effect him. He cared about his sons and Cordelia because of that soul, not because of any other reason.

Lilah took Angelus' silence as a cue to continue. "We can get rid of that soul for you. All you have to do is let us. We want to help."

Angelus glared up at Lilah. "Without the soul I get to be me completely again, correct? No more caring, no more holding back? I wouldn't care about my kids or about Cordelia?"

"Not at all." Gavin answered, thinking that was what Angelus wanted to hear. "In fact, you will probably kill them."

"Uh huh…" Angelus nodded slowly. He realized Gavin's words were true. Without the soul he would probably kill Cordelia, Connor, and Liam. He couldn't be certain of that but he felt the chances were much higher. He also didn't think he could let that happen. For whatever reason the seer and his sons had even found a place in Angelus' cold heart. Like Angel, he could not let anything happen to them. He glanced back up at the lawyers. "I need to think. I'll be back."

And with that Angelus was out the door. He needed to figure some things out. He knew without the soul Cordelia, Liam, and Connor were in danger, and even though Angel's soul drove him crazy he did not think he could let harm come to Cordelia or his sons.

Gavin watched the door close behind Angelus and then looked at Lilah. "What would he need to think about? We offered him the chance to get rid of the soul, to not have to deal with those emotions anymore. Why would he just walk out of here?"

Lilah thought for a moment and then realized why Angelus had walked out and could not believe how stupid she and Gavin were to let him. "He left because he cares." She said.

"What?" Gavin questioned.

"He cares." Lilah could kick herself. "Angelus cares about Cordelia and Angel's kids…he doesn't want to, but he does."

"So?" Gavin still wasn't catching on.

"So…" Lilah moved to her desk to grab her phone. She needed to make a few calls. "So…that's bad for us because he cares. He knows if he loses the soul he can't care and he does not want to hurt them which means he walked out my office door with no intentions of coming back. If we want the soul gone we are going to need to force it out of him now."


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 32**

Angelus had a lot on his mind as he made his way back to the apartment he shared with Cordelia. He knew the new information he had gathered from Wolfram and Hart was a lot to take in. Although he did not want the soul inside of him he couldn't help but shake the feelings he had for Cordelia or his sons.

Angelus opened the door to his apartment to find Cordelia sitting on the couch rocking Liam and Connor quietly playing with his trucks on the floor. Angelus immediately felt the tension coming from Cordelia and the sadness coming from Connor. Before he could say a word Connor looked up at Angelus.

"Daddy, you back?" Connor seemed to be in a better mood now then when Angelus had walked in.

Angelus nodded as Connor ran up to him, hugging his legs. "What's wrong, Connor?"

"Mommy mean." Connor glanced back at Cordelia. "She not let Uncle Gunn stay."

"Gunn?" Angelus looked up at Cordelia.

Cordelia nodded with a sigh. "They all dropped by here again looking for you."

"Damn in." Angelus clenched his jaw. He was sick of the Fang Gang just popping in whenever they chose to. He feared that sooner or later Cordelia would start to believe them. "What did they want?"

Before Cordelia could answer, Connor jumped up in down in front of Angel. "To play with me! Mommy no let them!"

"Connor, go to your room and let me and Daddy talk please?" Cordelia requested of the son who was mad at her.

"No." Connor shook his head at Cordelia.

"Connor, listen to your mother." Angelus instructed.

With a sigh, Connor put his head down in defeat and trudged into his room.

Once Connor was in his room, Cordelia stood, shifting a silent Liam in her arms. "I am getting sick of them barging in here."

"Me too." Angelus agreed.

"Except you are never home for it." Cordelia seemed annoyed. "I always have to deal with it. I wish they would just leave us alone."

"I have a feeling they won't." Angelus sighed, running a hand over Liam's head.

For the first time since he was born, Liam shivered at the touch of Angelus.

Angelus studied the child's eyes and it was as if Liam knew he was a phony, that he was not really Angel. The look on the baby's face caused Angelus to shiver himself.

"What are we going to do?" Cordelia asked.

Angelus studied her face. If he was smart he would get rid of his soul and then kill her as well as his sons; that would solve all his problems, but deep down he knew he could not do that. Deep down Angel would not let him. Angelus knew he was stuck in a turmoil he would never escape.

Wesley, Gunn, Fred, Buffy, and Lorne stood around the Hyperion Hotel. They needed to figure out the next step if they were going to bring Angel back. They knew they needed to get Angelus in their grasp somehow, but they also knew the chances of being able to bring him in without Cordelia's cooperation were slim to none.

"We could always force Cordelia." Buffy suggested.

"What? Pull a knife on her and make her bring Angelus here?" Gunn rolled his eyes at the Slayer's suggestion. "She wouldn't do it anyway, plus her half demon half is pretty strong. I am not sure we could make Cordy do anything she didn't want to."

"What about the boys?" Lorne said.

"What about them?" Fred asked.

"Well, if we get Liam and Connor we could use them as leverage against Angelus and Cordelia. They would have to work with us then." Lorne explained.

"So we becoming kidnappers to save the day?" Gunn raised an eyebrow.

"It actually might be the best idea we have had so far." Wesley said. "We know Liam and Connor are a weak spot for Cordelia and Angelus. It may be our only chance."

"Yeah, only problem there is if Angelus gets to us he will rip our throats out and think nothing of it." Gunn said. "We couldn't get ten feet with those kids."

"It's worth a shot." Buffy liked the plan especially because she knew it would hurt Cordelia as well as bring Angelus in to them.

"No one is firing any shots." Lilah's voice rose above the room.

The remaining members of the Fang Gang turned to see Lilah standing on the landing at the front door of the hotel.

"What do you want, Lilah?" Wesley stepped forward.

"Angelus." Lilah said simply. "I figured he would be here either ripping you all apart or at least threatening you to figure out his whole soul issue."

"He has you for that." Fred folded her arms. She did not like nor feel safe around Lilah.

"Yeah well it seems like Fang Boy didn't want our help." Lilah sighed.

"What do you mean?" Wesley asked.

"He stopped by the office today, we told him we could get the soul for him and he said he actually had to think about it." Lilah rolled her eyes. "But who knows with vampires. Anyway, is he here?"

"Do we look like we would be hiding him?" Buffy asked.

Lilah stepped to Buffy, studying the Slayer's face. "Who knows? Maybe if you wanted Angel back enough you would hid him from me."

"If it was that easy to get Angelus, don't you think we would have gotten Angel back already?" Gunn stepped toward Lilah, in between the lawyer and the Slayer.

Lilah nodded, seeming satisfied. She turned to the door. "If he stops by let him know I was calling for him." With that she moved out the door.

"I hate her." Gunn said the minute Lilah left.

"Don't we all, Sweet Cakes." Lorne said, leaning against the counter. "Weird that she would come here looking for him.

"Weird he turned down the chance to get rid of his soul." Buffy said. "I thought he would have jumped on that."

"Yes…rather weird…" Wesley said, although his voice trailed off as he began to think about what Buffy had just said. Angelus seemed to want the soul gone, so why had the vampire turned down the chance to do exactly that? It just did not make sense.

Angelus sat in the rocking chair that Cordelia had positioned in the corner of the bedroom she now shared with the vampire she thought was her Angel. She had originally placed it there so she could rock Liam to sleep, but Angelus did not use it the way the chair was meant to be used. He did not rock, however, but instead sat very still, watching Cordelia's chest rise and fall with each breath she took as she slept in the bed in the center of the room.

As Angelus watched the beautiful seer sleep he could feel Angel deep within him, longing to reach out and touch Cordelia, hold her; Angelus could feel Angel's love for Cordelia in every inch of his body.

"Give it up." Angelus whispered to Angel, deep down within him.

Angel's voice rose immediately in Angelus' head. _"You won't kill her. You can only do it without me, without your soul. You won't give me up either. You had your chance to lose me today at Wolfram and Hart and you did not give me up. You kept the soul."_

"I just had to think about it. Doesn't mean I won't go back and get rid of you tomorrow." Angelus threatened.

Angel seemed to know his evil half's threat was empty though, as his voice continued to ring in Angelus' head. _"Come on now, Angelus. You had your chances, it's done. You won't kill Cordelia or my sons. I know it."_

"My sons." Angelus seemed to correct Angel. "And if you piss me off enough I may. I want you gone, out of my head. Let me be."

"_Give me back what is mine."_ Angel said quickly.

Angelus seemed to chuckle at Angel. "And what is yours?"

"_They are. Cordelia, Liam, Connor and everyone at the Hyperion. They are mine. They are my family."_ Angel explained.

"Not anymore they aren't." Angelus' smirked. "They are all mine now, and I will do as I please with them."

"_You are useless, pathetic. You're not half the vampire you once were, not with me here."_ Angel tested his demon half.

"You shut up." Angelus growled.

"_Can't handle the truth, Angelus? Does it kill you to know you can't hurt me anymore?"_ Angel asked. _"You cannot take anything else from me then what you already have, and if I never get the chance to be with them again at least I know you will never hurt Cordelia or Connor or Liam. You care about them too much."_

"I care about no one." Angelus was annoyed now but after a moment he grinned slightly. "And I can take plenty from you yet. Trust me on that, Angel."

Angelus' second threat must have been more convincing then the first, because Angel remained silent afterwards, his words never rising again in Angelus' head as the demon sat, slightly rocking now with an evil grin dancing across his face as he watched Cordelia sleep. She was so peaceful, not knowing the killer she shared a bed with was watching her every breath in the dark of the bedroom.

Wesley was cleaning up the front counter of the Hyperion with the help of Fred when he realized just how significant Lilah's visit had been. He quickly stopped shuffling papers, which caught Fred's attention as she stood by his side.

"Wesley?" Fred raised an eyebrow, seeing the surprised look on Wesley's face.

Wesley looked at Fred. "We can save Angel."

"What?" Fred was confused now. "What do you mean?"

Wesley just smiled. "Get everyone in here."

A minute later Fred, Gunn, Lorne, and Buffy stood around Wesley who was now leaning against the counter, his arms folded with a calm smile on his face.

"What's the meeting for?" Gunn asked, slightly annoyed he had been disturbed from cleaning his weapons in the basement.

"I know how to get Angel back now." Wesley said.

"What do you mean?" Buffy seemed to jump at the information. "How do you know?"

"Lilah." Wesley said.

"Did we miss something?" Lorne asked. "Because last time Lilah came I believe we were all here and she did not give us any of that information."

"But she did." Wesley said. "Not directly, but she did."

"Explain." Buffy seemed to order.

Wesley nodded. "She said Angelus turned down the chance to get rid of the soul for good. There is no reason in the world Angelus would do something like that on his own."

"Except that he did." Gunn said.

"No he didn't." Wesley said simply. "Angel did."

"What?" Fred asked.

No one else seemed to understand what Wesley was getting at, but Lorne did. The demon smiled at Wesley. "Angel still has some pull over Angelus."

Wesley nodded. "He must, enough so that Angelus would not get rid of the soul, and enough that Angelus would not hurt Cordelia, Connor or Liam."

"Which means he has enough control to make sure Angelus doesn't kill us." Gunn understood now.

"Exactly." Wesley nodded. "All we need to do is get Angelus. He may fight us but he won't kill us, which means we can get Angel back."

"You really think so?" Buffy asked.

Wesley nodded. "All I need is Angelus. I have had the spell ready since I found it."

"So..." Gunn smiled. "Guess that means we are going hunting for a certain vampire."

"That it does." Wesley agreed with Gunn, a smile also dancing across his lips. He was glad he had figured out how do finally save Angel. It had been a long, hard journey for them all, and he was hopeful it was almost all over.

Angelus sat over his morning cup of blood which Cordelia had prepared especially for him as he watched her feed Connor his breakfast and rock Liam in her free arm. She had the mothering thing down pat at this point and it intrigued Angelus to some degree. Prior to losing his soul recently the only time he had encountered Cordelia had been in Sunnydale, and back then she was so stuck up. He wondered sometimes how she had turned into such a caring person so quickly.

"_Because she is strong."_ Angel's voice seemed to answer Angelus' in his head.

"Shut up." Angelus mumbled to Angel.

"What?" Cordelia looked over at Angelus.

"Huh?" He shot his head up at her.

"Did you say something?" Cordelia asked him, continuing to rock Liam as she took a seat between Angelus and Connor.

"No." Angelus shook his head quickly, annoyed at Angel more so then ever. The soul was really starting to wear on Angelus and he knew he needed to put Angel back in his place sooner or later.

"Okay." Cordelia laughed to herself.

Angelus couldn't help the smile that crept over his face at the sound of her laughter. He latterly couldn't help it because it wasn't his, it was Angel's. He could feel the soul getting stronger with each second that passed and he panicked. What if Angel managed to make his way back? Angelus could not risk that. He needed to make Angel feel he had nothing left to fight for, but how?

"So, any plans for you today?" Cordelia asked as she gently placed a now sleeping Liam in his swinging chair, her hips moving gracefully as she bent over, her full breast pushing out the front of her teal tee-shirt.

Suddenly, an idea crept into Angelus' head as he watched Cordelia's beautiful body move. He knew how to crush Angel's hopes and desires. He stood, saying nothing but moving around the table quickly, capturing Cordelia's lips in his before she could say anything.

When they broke apart, Cordelia smiled up at Angelus, surprised by his sudden aggression as he slide his hands up her shirt. "Angel, what are you doing?"

Angelus stopped his hands for a second. She had called him Angel, and he hated that. It made him only want to carry his plan out more. He quickly dove his face into Cordelia's neck, wanting to sink his teeth into her, but instead kissing her softly.

"Not that I mind the attention." Cordelia said, wrapping her hand around the back of Angelus' neck. "But what are you doing?"

Angelus smiled up at Cordelia. "Put a movie in for Connor, and get Liam in his crib."

"Why?" Cordelia was confused.

"Because." Angelus kissed her again. "I want you."

Cordelia raised an eyebrow at the vampire she thought was Angel. "What?"

Angelus pulled her in deeper, capturing her tongue with his. When they broke apart he could feel Angel trying to rip up through his throat, strangle him, but it only made Angelus smile. He could tell the soul buried within him was furious. He kissed Cordelia again and then whispered in her ear. "I wanted to tell you, I just couldn't find the right time."

"Tell me what?" Cordelia seemed to whisper back.

"The soul…it isn't going to be a problem, not anymore." Angelus told her.

Cordelia pulled away, smiling. "You mean…we can…" Clearly she had misinterpreted what Angelus had said. She thought he meant that Angelus could not come back, that Angel was all hers, when in fact the vampire meant exactly what he had said, the soul was not a problem.

Angelus nodded, knowing what she meant, but feeling the need to say it out loud, so Angel could hear. "We can sleep together."

"How?" Cordelia almost had tears in her eyes, so overjoyed. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"When I was away…" Angelus told her. "I…I got my _problem_ fixed." And Angelus' problem had been Angel, so indeed he had gotten it fixed. "I wanted to tell you earlier I just didn't know how to."

"It doesn't matter." Cordelia smiled at him, kissing him again, and then looking over her shoulder to see Connor busy playing with his trucks and watching some children show on TV. He would be busy for at least an hour. She kissed Angelus again. "Get in the bedroom."

Angelus smiled. "Where are you going?"

"Put Liam down." Cordelia rushed down to the baby's bedroom.

Angelus smirked to himself as he made his way down the hall of the apartment, whispering to the soul inside. "See Angel, she doesn't want you…she just wants this body…doesn't matter who is in charge of it."

For once, Angelus did not hear a response from his souled counter-part. Angel was quiet.

Before Angelus could say anything else, he felt Cordelia pull him from behind into a kiss while ripping his shirt off of him, the buttons flying everywhere before pushing him down on the bed they shared.

"A little rough?" Angelus smirked at Cordelia who had him straddled now.

"No." Cordelia gazed down at him as she pulled her own shirt off. "I just want this to be everything I dreamed it would be."

"It will be." Angelus told her. "I promise." He pulled her closer to him, kissing her softly on the lips and then working his way down her neck and chest. He would make it perfect for her, and in turn, he knew that would silence the soul deep down inside of him permanently. Angelus was convinced Angel would have nothing left to fight for once Angelus took Cordelia in a way Angel never would be able to.

Lilah and Gavin emerged from their meeting with the Senior Partners, who now had big plans for Angelus and had passed those duties on to the two lawyers. The lawyers walked silently next to one another until they made it to Lilah's office. Once inside, they both went off.

"I can't believe we are still in charge of running this show about Angelus." Lilah complained. She was sure, when she got called into the meeting, that the Senior Partner's were going to release her from the unachievable Angelus case and put her on something else. However, she had been completely wrong.

"It just means they have faith in us." Gavin said. "And I think that is a good thing."

"Yeah? Well I think you're stupid." Lilah said smugly, tossing herself into her desk chair. "Besides, their plan isn't going to work."

"It might." Gavin said.

Lilah rolled her eyes. "Have you met Angelus? We go over there and try to force him out and we are as good as dead."

"The Senior Partner's gave us a huge staff to take Angelus down by force." Gavin reminded her.

"A staff of humans." Lilah shook her head. "As good as gone."

"Well, regardless of your feelings in the matter we are leaving in twenty minutes to head over to that apartment. So I suggest you get ready." Gavin smirked before getting up and exiting the office.

Lilah sat in her chair a minute longer shaking her head. Angelus was not going to come quietly, and he had already manipulated Wolfram and Hart as well as the Senior Partners so much. This plan was child's play as far as Lilah was concerned and she had a feeling Angelus would think the same thing.

Cordelia awoke to a strange sound in her room. Someone was breathing heavily. She rolled her naked body over to see what she thought was Angel's naked chest gasping for unneeded air. She wondered if the vampire next to her was having a bad dream, after all, vampire's didn't need air. She shook him hard, trying to wake him from his sleep.

Angelus jolted forward at the touch of Cordelia's hand. Something was wrong, he could feel it deep down. He felt like he was suffocating.

"Angel, are you okay?" Cordelia asked.

Angelus looked at Cordelia, her bare breast glistening in the moonlight. Even through his own pain he smirked at the sight of her. He had taken her from Angel that night just as he had planned. Every inch of her was his now, he had memorized every curve in her body as they had had sex just a few hours earlier. Angel would have called it "making love" but Angelus loved no one, so to him it was just sex. Not that he hadn't been pleased with Cordelia; he could tell she had waited so long for Angel. Too bad Angel had nothing to do with it.

"Angel?" Cordelia called again.

Angelus took a deep breath, trying to fill his dead lungs with unneeded air. "I am okay."

"You don't sound it." Cordelia's voice was filled with concern.

"I'm fine." Angelus managed out, even though he wasn't. He had no idea what was wrong with him.

"Is it Angelus?" Cordelia asked quickly.

"What?" Angelus looked at Cordelia.

"From…" She motioned to the bed. "Angel, is Angelus coming back?"

Angelus was relieved. For a second he thought Cordelia had figured him out. "No." He said quickly as he stumbled out of bed. "I just need a drink."

Before Cordelia could say another word, Angelus moved to the bathroom, locking the door behind him and slumping down into a pile on the floor, both hands around his throat. He felt as though he was chocking on a foreign object. Something very wrong was happening to Angelus, his mind was racing in twenty different directions as he felt his eyes fill up with tears.

"No." Angelus gasped for air. He knew what was happening, but he didn't know how. It couldn't happen. He was in control now. "No!" Angelus clenched his jaw hard, and then collapsed onto the floor.


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 33**

Cordelia sat up in bed, looking over at the clock next to her. She had not meant to fall asleep after her rendezvous with who she thought was Angel because she knew Connor would not be content that long, still her son had not bothered her or his father yet.

Cordelia stood, throwing her clothes that were piled on the floor back on and moving to the bathroom Angelus had locked himself in, and pounded on the door slightly. "Angel?"

No response.

"Angel?" Cordelia tried again.

A grunt came from the other side of the door and before Cordelia could respond there was a knock at the front door of her apartment.

"Angel, someone is at the front door. I will be right back." Cordelia moved out of the bedroom and into the apartment, grabbing Liam, who was now wide awake, from his crib on her way. As she made her way into the living room she caught sight of Connor who was busy jumping on the couch.

"Connor, get down." Cordelia ordered her son. He knew better than that.

"Someone at door." Connor pointed to the door.

"I know, sweetie. Now get down." Cordelia ordered again.

Connor complied, plopping himself on the couch and then running on his short legs so she was next to Cordelia. He smiled up at his mother who was rocking his younger brother.

Before Cordelia could open the door to the apartment however, it came flying down back at her, causing Liam to let out a shrilling scream.

As Liam screamed, Lilah and Gavin stepped in over the door on the floor followed by a swat team of Wolfram and Hart.

"We want Angelus." Lilah said simply.

"He isn't here." Cordelia shot back, pulling Connor close to her and rocking Liam, trying her best to sooth the four month old. "He never was. Angel is here and he is going to kick your ass."

"Doubt it." Gavin snapped his finger and two Wolfram and Hart swat team members grabbed Cordelia while one other dislodged a crying Liam from her arms and the other grabbed a hold of a swinging Connor.

"Let them go!" Cordelia cried for her children.

"Yeah!" Connor kicked and tried to punch he man holding him. "Lemme go!"

"We just want to know where Angelus is." Lilah said.

"I told you, its Angel." Cordelia stood by her story.

"And I am telling you it's not." Lilah stepped toward Cordelia who was still struggling in the swat team members grasp. "We let Angelus out months ago, and he ran back here. We thought to kill you but apparently it was to play house. We didn't realize until later that the only way to get Angelus to kill any of you was to take out Angel's soul completely. We just shoved it down in him, but now we are here to get it out, get Angelus, and then have him rip you and those dumb members of Angel Investigations to shreds."

"You're lying." Cordelia said simply.

"Am I?" Lilah chuckled slightly. "Think about it, Cordelia. That vampire you're living with hasn't exactly been like Angel the past two months or so, has he?"

Cordelia went to answer, but then thought about the question. She thought about how Angel had come back and forced her out of work and forced her to turn on the Fang Gang. Not to mention all his little mood swings and rude comments. No, Angel had not been himself lately, but he had not been Angelus either. Cordelia knew Angelus, or so she thought.

Cordelia's silence was enough for Lilah to nod and smile. "See? Angel has been gone a long time, and you have been living with a monster, and now we are going to really release that monster."

"Well, you can try." A familiar voice came as the body of Angel stepped into the living room. "But I gotta tell you, I think Angelus is on a permanent vacation."

"Ha ha." Lilah said sarcastically. "And I am the queen of England."

"Then where is your crown?" The vampire smirked back.

Lilah studied the vampire in front of her for a moment before looking over at Gavin.

"Gavin has no answer for you, Lilah." The vampire stepped in the lawyers face. "But know this…I am sufficiently _pissed_ about you shoving me down inside that maniac of a soulless vampire for the past few months."

Lilah's eyes grew wide with information. She stammered on her next work. 'A…A…Angel?"

"That's right." Angel smiled. He was back, and he was pissed.

"How?" Gavin stepped toward the vampire.

"Simple." Angel said, grabbing Lilah by the throat. "I loved someone." He glanced back at Cordelia. "And I would give her up to no one. Especially not Angelus." Angel then swung Lilah around in his grasp. "Now let my family go." He stated to the swat team.

Before anyone could react, however, Angel found himself being slammed against a wall by an all too familiar touch. "Not so fast." Buffy hissed in his ear.

The next thing Angel knew, Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and Lorne were busting in the apartment as well, taking down swat team members left and right.

"Take them all!" Lilah ordered.

"Buffy!" Angel cried under her grasp. "Get Cordy and the boys out of here!"

"Shut up, Angelus!" Buffy banged his head into the wall, not letting the vampire go.

"No!" Angel tried. "It's me!" He knew it was no use, and he knew they were all in danger. He glanced over at Wesley, making eye contact. "Wes, please get Cordy and the boys out of here!"

Wesley was unsure of what to think of the vampires request, but he nodded, knocking out two swat team members with his gun before managing to free Cordelia.

Cordelia punched the man holding Liam until he let go of her crying son while Gunn took of the member holding Connor.

"Now get out of here!" Angel ordered.

Wesley nodded, grabbing Cordelia's wrist.

"No! I am not leaving him!" Cordelia motioned to Angel as Wesley pulled her out the door.

"I am fine!" Angel told her. "Go!"

Before anyone else could say anything, the Fang Gang busted out of the apartment, now with Cordelia, Connor, and Liam, leaving Angel at the mercy of Wolfram and Hart.

Lilah moved to the vampire who was on the floor now, all guns pointed at him. "We want Angelus, that's all."

"Kiss my ass." Angel stood.

Lilah shook her head, grabbing a gun and smacking Angel over the back with it. "Wrong answer."

Angel collapsed to the floor, taking a minute to get up, but when he did it was with his fangs and vampire features. "Angelus is gone." He grabbed Lilah by the throat. "But I would like nothing more than to kill you."

Lilah looked to Gavin who was not budging to help her and then to the rest of the swat team who had their guns pointed at her and vampire.

Angel could tell the odds were now in his favor so he threw Lilah at the swat team and jumped right through the window, falling two stories and landing conveniently on the front of Wesley's car.

"Angel!" Cordelia cried through the window of the car.

Angel looked up at the swat team who was pointing guns out the window at the car and then banged on Wesley's hood. "Go!" He ordered as he himself jumped on the roof of Wesley's jeep as Wesley took off down the road and back toward the Hyperion.

Lilah sat in her office, waiting for someone to come in and scream at her for butchering the Angelus plans the way she had; not that Gavin had been much help. After Angel had jumped out the window, Lilah had ordered the swat team to follow him while Gavin told them to retreat. They ultimately listened to Gavin and left, so Lilah felt if anyone was going to get in trouble it should have been Gavin.

Lilah moved to the window, looking out over the city of Los Angeles. With Angel back in town, the dynamics of the game were going to change, people were going to be dropped, and Lilah needed to make sure she was not one of them. She could give two about Gavin, but she knew she needed to save her own ass with the Senior Partners.

"Which means, Angel is going to have to go down hard." Lilah smirked to herself. She knew what she needed to do. She needed to take Angel out and bring him back to Wolfram and Hart so they could extract the soul and bring back Angelus, the right way this time.

Wesley pulled around the back of the Hotel with Angel still clinging to the roof. The ride back from Cordelia's had been a hectic one, with Cordelia shouting it was Angel on the roof and the Fang Gang telling her it was Angelus, all while Liam cried and Connor chimed in yelling at anyone who yelled at Cordelia.

Wesley put the car in park with a jerk and Angel's body came flying off the roof, landing in front of the jeep.

"Get him!" Buffy ordered.

Before Cordelia could stop any of them, Gunn, Buffy, and Wesley were out of the car, pounding on Angel with bats. The vampire soon fell unconscious.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Cordelia climbed out of the truck, clutching a still very upset Liam.

"Just get in the hotel." Wesley told her.

"Yeah right." Cordelia snorted.

"Fine." Lorne shuffled out of the car, holding Connor. "Do what you want, Cordy, but your boys are coming with us." Lorne moved into the hotel with a kicking Connor before Cordelia could react.

Cordelia had no choice but to follow the demon in. "Give me back my son!"

As Cordelia marched into the hotel, Wesley and Gunn carried in the lifeless form of Angel, followed by Buffy and then Fred, who locked the door to the hotel behind them all. They had Cordelia and they had Angelus and they were not about to give either of them up.

"What should we do with him?" Gunn asked under the weight of Angel's body.

"Cage…in the basement." Buffy instructed. "That way when he wakes up, he has nowhere to go."

"No cage." Angel mumbled.

"Crap!" Gunn threw Angel off his back, thinking it was Angelus.

Wesley quickly moved to the weapons cabinet, grabbing some chains, and chaining Angel's hands together, as well as his feet together. If they couldn't get the vampire in the basement, they were not about to let him run free.

"Let him go!" Cordelia tried.

"Cordy, it's Angelus." Fred turned to her former friend.

"No, it's not!" Cordelia started, and then, looking down at Liam who had calmed down a bit, quietly added. "It can't be."

"It is, princess." Lorne said, noticing the change in Cordelia's demeanor and releasing Connor who immediately ran to Cordelia's side, clinging to her leg as if it were the last thing on earth.

"I am not." Angel was conscious now, and looking up at the Fang Gang, plus Buffy, Cordelia, and his two sons. His mouth was cut open and his head bruised.

"I know." Cordelia moved forward towards him but Angel flinched away.

"I am not him _anymore_." Angel said, unable to look Cordelia in the eye.

Cordelia stopped dead in her tracks, rocking Liam and staring down at Angel. "What do you mean anymore?"

"I was…him." Angel said, still unable to look her in the eye. He couldn't believe what Angelus had done to her, how he had toyed with her, confused her, and slept with her. Angel was ashamed of his unsouled half. "I'm not anymore."

"Oh please." Buffy snorted. "Like we are going to buy that crap."

"Exactly." Gunn crossed his arms over his chest. "That's exactly what Angelus would say."

Angel looked up, ready to argue with Gunn, but realizing he had no point. Gunn was right, Angelus would have said that, and Angel had no real way to explain to everyone that Angelus was gone without explaining Angelus had slept with Cordelia. He could not admit to that, and he did not want to embarrass Cordelia. Plus, even he was a little unsure why e was back so suddenly. He had been fighting Angelus the whole time but when Angelus had slept with Cordelia it was enough to piss Angel off furiously, and the next thing Angel knew he was back and Angelus was gone.

"_If_ you are Angel…and that's a big _if_, where is Angelus?" Wesley questioned.

"I don't know." Angel was still looking down.

"I don't understand any of this." Cordelia said, running a hand over Connor's head as he stood next to her and still balancing Liam in her other arm.

"Wolfram and Hart brought Angelus back." Wesley said. "Angelus came back here, and moved in with you, made you think it was Angel."

"Angelus would have killed me." Cordelia said.

"He couldn't." Angel said, still looking down. "Because I was still in there." He looked up at Cordelia. "I wouldn't let him."

"You are still him." Buffy was in Angel's face. "I know Angelus when I see him, and you're not fooling any of us."

"Shut up." Angel told her.

Before Angel could say anything else, he felt Buffy's fist connect with the side of his head, and then his stomach. He fell off the couch in pain, still chained up.

No one reacted to Angel being on the floor, no one except Connor, who for some reason moved away from Cordelia and towards his father.

"Connor, no!" Gunn shouted at the child.

But Connor would have none of it and the two and a half year old darted toward his father. "Dad?" He knelt by Angel, poking at the vampires head.

Angel managed to look up at his son, forcing a smile. "I missed you, buddy."

Everyone in the room stayed very still and quiet to see the next move the vampire or his offspring were going to make.

Connor giggled and hugged Angel's neck. "I love you."

Angel couldn't help the tears in his eyes. "I love you too."

"That's Angel." Cordelia handed Liam to Fred and moved forward, kneeling next to Connor and propping Angel up against the couch. "This is Angel."

"Cordelia, we can't be sure." Fred said, rocking Liam. Although she wanted to believe it was Angel too, the vampire seemed so much like her former boss.

"Let me sing." Angel said, looking at Lorne. "I swear it's me."

"Then sing." Lorne crossed his arms, still unsure of the vampire in front of him.

So Angel sang, and sang until Lorne told him to stop. "Well?"

Lorne smiled, looking around the room. "It's Angel."

"Thank God!" Fred moved forward, handing Liam back to Cordelia and helping the seer to her feet while Wesley and Gunn undid his chains.

When Angel was free again he moved toward Connor, scooping the child up in his arms and holding him for a long time in silence.

"Dad? Play trucks with me tomorrow?" Connor asked Angel.

"Sure, buddy." Angel smiled at his son. "Anytime, anywhere."

"Wait a minute." Wesley interrupted the moment. "How did you get back, Angel?"

Angel looked at Cordelia who was bouncing Liam in her arms, studying Angel's face. He couldn't tell the group Cordelia had slept with Angelus and it had brought him back, so instead he shook his head. "I don't know."

That was enough for Cordelia who had a million things flying through her head. She turned quickly on her heel and stormed out into the courtyard of the hotel, still bouncing Liam in her arms.

Angel glanced around the room and then, with Connor still in his arms, followed Cordelia outside.

Buffy rolled her eyes when Angel slammed the door. "Of course, even now Cordelia makes it _all_ about her."

"Buffy." Wesley stepped at the Slayer. "Your work here is done. I suggest you leave."

"Are you kidding me?" Buffy questioned.

"No, he is being serious." Gunn chimed in. "We don't want you around anymore. We don't want you screwing around with Angel's head, or trying to hurt Cordelia's feelings. We pretty much…don't have a use for you anymore."

"Well, we will see how Angel feels about that." Buffy went to move to follow Angel but was cut off by Lorne and Fred who stepped in front of her.

"You go out there and try to interrupt him and the princess and you will wish you were never born." Lorne threatened.

"Yeah." Fred nodded in agreement, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

Buffy looked around the room at the four members of Angel Investigations and realized she had no choice but to follow their wishes. "Fine." She mumbled, moving toward the front door. "But don't think this is the last of me. Angel will want me back. I know him." And with that Buffy slammed the door to the hotel.

Angel moved out into the courtyard to see Cordelia sitting by the fountain, bouncing Liam in her arms to the point that Angel was sure the baby's brain was getting shifting. Angel could smell Cordelia's tears even from the door. He moved cautiously up to her.

"Can I sit down?" Angel asked quietly.

Cordelia glanced up at Angel who was holding Connor, tears in her eyes, but she said nothing to him.

"Mommy's sad." Connor said to Angel, matter-of-factly.

"I know." Angel nodded at Connor, sitting down next to Cordelia and putting Connor in his lap.

Angel and Cordelia remained silent next to each other, each holding one of their sons.

"Mommy, why is you so sad?" Connor broke the silence, rubbing one of his little fists against Cordelia's shoulder.

"Mommy is just sad that Daddy didn't tell her the truth, honey." Cordelia told Connor, not making eye contact with Angel.

Connor turned accusingly at Angel. "Why you not tell the truth? That bad, Dad."

Angel sighed. "I know it is, Connor." He then looked up at Cordelia. "I tried to tell you."

"You let Angelus rape me." Cordelia snorted.

"Cordy, he didn't rape you…" Angel remembered how Cordelia had been more than willing to sleep with Angelus.

Cordelia snorted, rocking Liam still. "He might as well have." She glanced up at Angel, tears in her eyes as she added softly. "I thought he was you, Angel."

"I know." Angel nodded. "And I am sorry. I'm so sorry, Cordy. I wasn't in control."

Cordelia shook her head, laughing like her life was a cruel joke. "And look how much you must care about me… Buffy sleeps with you and you lose your soul to eternal bliss…I sleep with you, and I scare a soulless demon out of you."

"Cordelia, that's not true." Angel told her. "Knowing Angelus had slept with you…it only made my feelings for you stronger. So strong in fact that I was able to overthrow Angelus. You did that, Cordy. You saved me."

Cordelia shook her head, trying to stop herself from crying and chancing the subject. "What if he had done something to me or the boys?"

"Cordy, I did everything I could to make sure he didn't." Angel argued. "And this isn't my fault. I tried to get back, I really did. And Wesley was trying to warn you, you wouldn't listen to him!" Angel was started to get frustrated with Cordelia.

As Angel's voice rose, so did Cordelia from her seat. She now stood in Angel's face, pointing down at him with one hand as she cradled Liam in the other. "Don't you yell at me. I am sorry I didn't listen to Wesley, but he had been lying to me about tracking you, and then Angelus persuaded me into thinking he was you, and I wanted him to be you so damn badly because I couldn't stand being with your kids by myself. I didn't want to raise them without you, I wanted you here with me!"

"Well, I am here now." Angel reminded her.

Cordelia shook her head. "Now, after Buffy followed you and Wolfram and Hart hid your soul! You didn't come back to me! Angelus came back to me! If it hadn't been for him, you would still be wherever you were with Buffy!"

Angel stood now, holding Connor in his one arm. "Cordy, I wanted to be with you. I just didn't want to hurt you."

"You didn't try to come back…" Cordelia shook her head.

"Cordelia, I wanted to, believe me." Angel tried.

Cordelia looked at the ground and then at Angel. "I can't."

"Why not?" Angel asked, desperately.

"Because…too much has happened, Angel." Cordelia's voice was soft now. "I want to be with you, but right now…with what happened to you and me and Angelus…I think I just need to focus on them." Cordelia motioned to Liam and Connor, and suddenly realized Connor was not really her son, not by blood. With Angel back she had no rights to Connor. She quickly backtracked her words, glancing down at Liam. "Or…I mean with him."

Angel understood what she meant. She needed time away from him, and she wanted to focus on his sons. Angel wouldn't take Connor from her, not now. His son had grown too attached to her. Connor was just as much Cordelia's child as he was Angel's now. "I understand." He glanced down at Connor. "I…I'll go back to your place. It isn't safe for the three of you there alone right now. You should stay here with everyone else. "

"Angel…Connor…" Cordelia started.

"Is your son too, Cordelia." Angel cut her off. "He is better off with you here, anyway. I'll call you guys in the morning." He set Connor down on the ground.

"Angel…I love you." Cordelia told him, knowing it was the first time she had told him and not Angelus how she felt about him. "I just need time. I need to get my life back together right now."

Angel nodded. If she needed time, he would give it to her. "That's fine, Cordelia." He walked past her toward the garden exit, but then turned back. "And I love you too, and I will give you however much time you need."

"Come see the boys tomorrow." Cordelia told him. She knew he wanted to be with his sons and she had no right to take them from their father.

"Okay." Angel gave a small smile before heading out of the garden.

Cordelia sighed and then motioned to Connor, grabbing the child's hand. "Come on, Connor. Let's go inside."

"Where is Daddy going?" Connor asked.

"Back with Dennis." Cordelia told the child. "You'll see him tomorrow."

"He make you sad, Mommy?" Connor asked.

Cordelia tried her best to smile. "Sometimes Daddy does make Mommy sad, but he doesn't mean it. Now come on, we are going to stay here tonight."

"Your bedroom is all ready." Fred's voice caught Cordelia's attention.

Cordelia looked up at the door of the Hyperion to see Gunn, Fred, Wesley, and Lorne standing there. "How long have you guys been up there?"

"Just long enough to hear you tell Connor that Angel is going back to your place." Gunn told her.

Cordelia felt the need to defend that decision. "We just need time apart…things got a little complicated between us."

"We think it's smart to not be on top of each other now." Wesley told her.

"You do?" Cordelia questioned.

Lorne nodded. "We do. Now come on in, sugar. Let's get those babies in bed."

"Before we go anywhere, I want to apologize to you guys." Cordelia said. "I know what I said to you all and what I did was so wrong."

"Hey, you thought it was Angel." Gunn said. "We aren't holding anything against you. Just glad you're back."

Cordelia smiled a little. "Thanks." She then took Connor by the hand, still holding Liam in her other arm, and followed the Fang Gang into the Hyperion Hotel.

Lilah could not believe she had contacted him, but he was a last resort. He was the only person she knew who still had it out for Angel and wanted to crush the souled vampire. Even if working with him would jeopardize her job it was a risk she had to take. She needed to get rid of Angel.

Suddenly, there was a knock on Lilah's front door. The lawyer moved from her kitchen to the door of her apartment. "Yes?" She called through it.

"It's me." A familiar voice said from the other side of the door.

Lilah took a deep breath and then slowly opened her front door to see a familiar man standing there. "Glad you made it."

"It's good to see you, Lilah." Lindsey McDonald grinned as he stepped into her apartment.


	34. Chapter 34

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 34**

Cordelia gently patted Liam's back with a washcloth as she bathed her three month old son. Connor stood on a stool behind her, trying his best to brush his teeth in the mirror, although he could not see his full face since he was so short.

Cordelia tried to stay calm as she bathed Liam, but her hand was shaking, and Connor noticed.

"You 'kay, Mom?" Connor asked, a mouth full of toothpaste.

Cordelia turned back to look at Connor for a second. "Yeah, baby. I am okay." But the truth was she was nervous as hell. Angel was coming over today to sit with the boys and, she suspected, try to talk to her; but after all the information thrown at her last night, she still had a lot on her mind.

She hadn't even slept well, although when she had climbed the stairs after Angel had left the hotel, Cordelia was sure she would be able to sleep forever. She was, however, mistaken. She had slept maybe two hours before getting up and walking around her bedroom at the Hyperion Hotel. Then she had checked in on Connor and Liam, and then she had made her way down to Angel's old bedroom, although she had not gone in. She couldn't; she was not ready.

Liam's soft whimper brought Cordelia's thoughts back to the baby in her hands. She realized she had been washing the same part of Liam's back for awhile now and his skin was getting red. "Sorry, sweetie." She apologized and scooped Liam up, wrapping him in a towel.

Liam didn't seem to mind once he was wrapped in the warm towel and he quickly nestled himself next to Cordelia's breast.

"Connor, can you go get your clothes on?" Cordelia asked. She had put clothes on his bed for him earlier that day and did not understand how he was still not in them.

Connor sighed. He wanted to stay in his little boxers all day, with no shirt on, just like his Daddy used to do when they lived at the other house. "Why?"

"Because Daddy is coming over soon." Cordelia told him as she moved to her bed, placing Liam down on it, and starting to dress the baby.

"So? He don't care." Connor told her, crossing his almost three year old arms over his bare chest.

"Connor, please?" Cordelia asked.

Connor sighed, giving in to Cordelia just like Angel used to. He moved to his bed and started to get dressed.

"Thank you, honey." Cordelia smiled warmly at Connor who smiled back at her, happy to please her.

A knock on the door startled Cordelia.

"Yes?" Cordelia questioned.

"It's me, Cordy." Fred's voice came from the other side of the door.

"Come in." Cordelia told her.

Fred entered the bedroom, carrying a cup of orange juice for Cordelia only to find the seer still in her pajama's with Liam half dressed on the bed and Connor on the floor trying to get his socks on. Fred was taken back for a moment; she never expected Cordelia to look the way she did at the hour it was. From what Fred had remembered, Cordelia had always gotten up, gotten showered, and gotten dressed right away.

Cordelia could see the shocked look on Fred's face and she smiled. "What is it, Fred?"

"Nothing." Fred shook her head. "You…you just look…"

"Like a mom?" Cordelia finished Fred's sentence.

Fred nodded, putting Cordelia's orange juice on the table next to the bed. "So Angel is coming by today?"

Cordelia nodded, getting back to work on dressing Liam. "He is."

"You okay?" Fred asked.

Cordelia did not look at Fred; instead she pulled the small t-shirt over Liam's head. "I'm fine. He is coming to see the boys, not me."

"Cordelia…" Fred started.

Cordelia picked a fully dressed Liam up and turned to Fred. "Fred, please just…I don't really want to talk about any of it right now. The point is he wants to be a part of his son's lives and that's important. This isn't about me right now."

Fred nodded, understanding what Cordelia meant. She decided not to pursue the topic of Angel any longer. "Well, why don't you let me keep an eye on Liam and Connor and you can shower?"

"Oh, Fred, would you?" Cordelia was so happy at the offer.

"Of course. I'll take them downstairs. I am sure their Uncle Gunn wants to see them." Fred took Liam gently from Cordelia.

"Yeah! Uncle Gunn!" Connor blew past Fred and Cordelia and out the door to get downstairs.

Cordelia just shook her head with a smile at Connor, and then turned her attention to Fred. "Thanks."

"Just take your shower. We will be downstairs when you are done." Fred said.

"Okay." Cordelia gently patted Liam's head. "You be good for your Aunt Fred, okay?"

Connor swatted at Cordelia's hand and giggled a little as Fred turned and made her way out of the bedroom with him, giving Cordelia a chance to be truly alone for the first time since the whole Angel ordeal had begun. Cordelia let out a big sigh. She knew deep down she could not wait to see Angel that day, but she also knew that her whole relationship with him was in ruins, both as friends and possibly as something more. She didn't even know where to begin to pick up the pieces.

Angel tried his best to avoid the patches of sunlight creeping in from the shattered window in Cordelia's apartment that Wolfram and Hart had forced him to create the night before. He hoped he looked good to see Cordelia. It was hard to tell, however, without being able to see his reflection.

"Dennis?" Angel called out. "Do I look okay?"

Cordelia's ghost quickly wrote "YES" using the letter magnets that belonged to Connor that hung on the refrigerator.

"Thanks." Angel said to the ghost. He was trying his best not to be nervous but he was failing miserably. He knew Cordelia had said she just wanted to focus on the boys right now, and he understood that. He wanted to focus on his sons too; but he also wanted to fix things with her. He knew now, more than ever, that he loved her and he needed her.

"Well, wish me luck, Dennis." Angel said to the ghost.

"GOOD LUCK" was written on the refrigerator in a few seconds, and Angel couldn't help but smile as he made his way out the door and down to the sewer to get over to the Hyperion Hotel.

Lilah had told Lindsey every last detail of what had happened with Angel, and Angelus, and Cordelia and Connor and Liam, and was now watching the ex-lawyer pace her apartment and take it all in. She could tell, by the look in Lindsey's eyes, that she had contacted the right person to help her with the job.

"So we want to kill Angel, basically?" Lindsey finally asked.

"Well, get rid of him. We want Angelus." Lilah said.

"Right…but in order to do that we need to get rid of Angel, permanently?" Lindsey asked.

"Right." Lilah said.

"So, it's like killing him." Lindsey grinned.

Lilah nodded. "In a way, I guess."

"That's all you had to say." Lindsey smiled. "I'm going to get some sleep, and then I'll start."

Lilah nodded again. "Sounds good. Guest bedroom is down the hall on the right."

Lindsey nodded in return and then followed Lilah's directions down the hallway and into her guest bedroom.

Lilah sighed, sitting at her kitchen table over a cup of coffee. It had taken her most of the night to explain everything to Lindsey and she was overly tired, but she knew she had to go into work and pretend like nothing was happening. She couldn't risk letting the Senior Partners know she had outsourced in over to take care of the Angel problem, especially since Lindsey McDonald was the man helping her.

Wesley, Gunn, and Lorne fumbled around in the lobby of the Hyperion Hotel. All three had been on edge since last night, worried that Wolfram and Hart was going to try and come back after Cordelia, Connor, and Liam. They were all thankful that that had not happened.

"So what you guys think about Angel coming over?" Gunn asked from his seat on the couch.

"If Cordelia wants him here we don't have much say on the matter." Wesley said simply, leaning against the counter.

Gunn looked down at his hands. "Yeah, I guess."

"Relax, Gunn." Lorne could sense the man's nervousness. "Angel is coming to see his kids, not to try and patch things up with Cordelia. I think the drama will be relatively low."

"I hope so." Gunn sighed. "I can't take much more drama, the past 24 hours have been more then enough for me."

"More then enough what?" Cordelia's voice filled the lobby as she descended the stairs.

Gunn smiled up at her. "Nothing. You look good, Cordy." And she did. Her now dark hair was curdled neatly at her shoulder and she wore an off-white blouse with a cute pair of jeans.

Cordelia looked around the lobby. "Where are my kids?"

"Fred has them in the kitchen." Wesley told Cordelia.

As if on cue, Connor came busting through the kitchen doors, waving a cookie in the air and giggled as Fred followed him, Liam in her arms.

"I got cookie!" Connor giggled as he ran around the couch Gunn was sitting on.

Cordelia grabbed Connor on one of his laps. "Slow down, mister." She took the cookie from him.

"Hey! That mine!" Connor seemed annoyed.

"Not before lunch it isn't." Cordelia told him and put him down.

Connor seemed upset, but he knew better, so instead he moved across the lobby to his toy trucks that sat in the corner.

Cordelia then moved to Fred, scooping Liam from her arms. "Thanks for taking them, Fred."

"Cordelia, its fine. You needed to shower, and I missed the boys." Fred told her.

"Well, still, thanks." Cordelia smiled as she looked down at Liam who smiled devilishly at her and pulled a piece of her hair.

"Ouch! Liam!" Cordelia yanked her hair from her son.

"Quite the grip he's got." Angel's voice filled the lobby as the vampire appeared at the entrance to the basement. Noticing everyone's looks of confusion, Angel felt the need to explain himself. "I…I came through the sewers, you know…because of the light outside."

"Right." Gunn nodded simply, still unsure of Angel.

Cordelia could feel the tension in the lobby, and she did not want that to interfere with Angel seeing his son's. "Angel, why don't we take the boys upstairs?"

"Yeah! Yeah!" Connor was at Angel's side in a flash, reaching for his father. "Pick me up!"

Angel smiled at his son and grabbed the child. "Better?"

"Yes!" Connor clapped. "Now let go play upstairs!"

Angel laughed. "Okay." He looked over at Cordelia and she gave a small nod, signaling him to follow her up the stairs. He did so with a sense of relief that he would not have to be in such a high-tension situation like the lobby had seemed to become.

Angel was a step behind Cordelia who was a step behind Connor as she carried Liam up the stairs. Connor quickly burst into the bedroom that had once been Angel's. Cordelia had taken it over because it had the attached room for the boys to stay in.

Angel followed Cordelia into his old bedroom and was amazed how it had remained the same even though he had been gone so long.

Cordelia, as if reading Angel's mind, shook her head. "I didn't have the heart to change anything in here."

Angel looked at Cordelia and then shrugged, digging his hands in his pockets. "You've only been here the night."

"No." Cordelia moved, sitting on the bed and bouncing Liam as if he were walking on her legs. "Connor and I stayed here for a little while and when I was pregnant with Liam…sometimes I was just too tired to make it home."

"Cordy, I am sorry I wasn't around for you then." Angel said, and meant it. He was a father of two now and had witnessed neither of the pregnancies associated with his children.

Cordelia waved her hand and looked at Connor, who had seemed to forget that Angel was there because he had busied himself at his pretend work-bench, banging some fake hammers on some fake wood. "It doesn't matter. We are way passed it."

"No, I mean…" Angel tried to gather his words. "I want to know everything. I want to know about Connor and what I missed and your pregnancy and Liam…"

Cordelia took a deep breath as she stood, moving Liam to his crib. The almost 4 month old grabbed at Cordelia. He did not want to be put down, obviously, but he settled quickly when Cordelia gave him a pacifier. Cordelia then turned to Angel, her arms out. "Then ask."

Angel nodded, sitting down on the bed. "Okay." His mind scrambled for a question. "So…so when did Connor start walking?" Angel had settled on that as an easy question to start off with.

"Around a year." Cordelia told him.

"And talking?" Angel asked.

"Same." Cordelia told Angel.

Angel nodded. "And, when…he pointed to Liam. When was he born?"

"Right before you came back…or Angelus, or whoever." Cordelia looked at her hands.

"Everything went okay with him and that?" Angel asked.

"Besides the fact that I almost gave birth to him in my apartment, yeah." Cordelia said with a sigh.

"Oh." Angel nodded, knowing what he wanted to say but not being able to word it.

Cordelia knew the vampire better than that. "What is it?" She asked.

"Huh?" Angel looked at her.

"What else did you want to know?" Cordelia asked again.

"Uh…I…" Angel took a deep breath and just said it. "What happened to Groo?"

Cordelia counted help the smile that crept on her face as she realized Angel really had been jealous of Groo. "He uh…he left, right after you did."

"Why?" Angel asked.

"He found out I was pregnant and he knew there was no way it was his." Cordelia said, glancing over at Liam who was shaking his fist around.

"Oh." Angel said simply. He couldn't help but feel both happy and angry at the same time. He was happy that the Groosalugg was not going to be an issue any longer, but mad that Groo would just up and leave Cordelia like that. He thought Groo had cared for Cordelia more then that, but then again Angel realize he had done the exact same thing to his seer.

"I didn't love him." Cordelia said simply.

"Who?" Angel had been lost in his thoughts.

"Groo." Cordelia said. "I didn't love him."

Angel nodded; it was all he could do.

Just then, Connor came up to Angel, pulling on his father's leg. "Dad, you play with me now?" Connor held up a small toy car.

Angel smiled warmly at his son. "Sure." He moved to get on the floor but stopped when he heard something by the door.

Cordelia noticed the look on Angel's face. "What?" She asked.

Angel listened for another minute and then whispered up at Cordelia. "Grab Liam. Keep Connor by you."

Cordelia did so, moving and gathering Liam, and then pulling Connor toward her as she stood behind Angel.

"What, Mommy?" Connor yanked on Cordelia.

"Connor, shh." Angel whispered, silencing his son. He then crept slowly to the door and went to open it, when suddenly it flung open and the figure on the other side brought the butt of a crossbow quickly across Angel's face, sending the vampire to the floor.

"Angel." Lindsey grinned down at the vampire before looking up at Cordelia, Liam, and Connor. "Oh and the whole family is here. Well…isn't this a treat?"


	35. Chapter 35

Disclaimer: All characters and things from ANGEL and BUFFY belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy. If they aren't on the show they belong to me.

Summary: Takes place after "Waiting In The Wings". What if Angel and Cordelia hadn't been interrupted, and how would the outcomes of that one event change the lives of the Fang Gang forever? A/C pairing

**CHAPTER 35**

"Lindsey?" Angel had to admit, he was slightly in shock as he stared up at the ex-lawyer in front of him.

"Did you miss me?" Lindsey asked.

Angel got to his feet, causally wiping his knees off and placing himself between Lindsey and Cordelia with his sons. "Honestly? Can't say I did."

"That's a shame." Lindsey smirked before hitting Angel across the face with the cross-bow one more time.

This time, Angel sprang back up, his game face on. "I really wish you would stop doing that." He punched Lindsey across the face.

Lindsey stumbled back a few feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, but never losing the smirk on his face. "Relax."

"Get out." Angel said simply.

"I would…but I can't." Lindsey replied. "See, I came here for something and I am not leaving until I get it."

"What?" Angel asked.

"Well…" Lindsey sighed. "You…Angelus…you know."

"Out." Angel repeated.

"Ok." Lindsey held his hands up in defense and moved out the door.

Angel turned back to Cordelia who had Liam in her arms and Connor next to her. "You okay?"

Cordelia nodded. "What is Lindsey doing back here?"

Angel shook his head. "I don't know…" He started, but was cut off as he felt something fly threw his lower abdomen. He looked down to see an arrow lodged in his side.

"Actually, I decided I would stay." Lindsey stepped back into the room, and moved to face Angel who was now on his knees. He held the crossbow to the vampire's throat. "Now I told you what I want."

"Well, you're not getting it." Cordelia pushed Lindsey as hard as she could from behind, planting his head into the wall.

Angel looked to see that Cordelia had put Liam back in his crib. "Thanks."

Cordelia smiled. "Sure." She knelt down next to him. "Let's get this arrow out of you."

Just then, Gunn and Wesley made it up the stairs, both were bruised and battered.

"Is he still here?" Gunn asked.

"Lindsey?" Cordelia asked back.

Gunn nodded. Apparently, he and Wesley had met Lindsey downstairs earlier.

Cordelia pointed to the corner where Lindsey had just been, but realized he was not there anymore. "What?"

"Mommyyy!" Connor called.

Cordelia whipped around to see Lindsey standing their with Connor under his one arm. "Let my son go!"

Lindsey looked down at Connor, who was struggling against him. "I thought he was Darla's?" he smirked.

Everyone else stood still; everyone except Angel.

"Let him go!" Angel got to his feet. "Or I will…"

"Or what?" Lindsey put the crossbow to Connor's head. "You will force me to shoot him."

"Angel, don't move!" Cordelia cried, fighting back tears as she watched her son struggle for his life.

"Yeah, Angel. Listen to her." Lindsey said. "Or actually…you can fall." He quickly shot the vampire in the leg again, causing him to fall back to the floor; and before anyone could stop him, Lindsey was out the window with Connor.

Wesley and Gunn moved to the window as soon as the lawyer had jumped, only to see that Lindsey had landed and was running toward a black pick-up truck with Connor under his arm.

"Crap!" Gunn said.

"Where is he going?" Cordelia cried.

"One guess." Angel said, yanking the arrow from his leg.

"You think?" Wesley asked. "You think he would go to Wolfram and Hart? After they fired him?"

"Where else would he go?" Angel slowly got to his feet. "Cordy, get Liam and everyone get downstairs."

"What are we going to do?" Cordelia asked, trying her best to gather Liam with her trembling hands.

"We're going to get our son back." Angel said simply before moving out the door and down the stairs as fast as he could with his new injuries. He was getting Connor back no matter what. He had just gotten his family back and no one would destroy that; he didn't care who he had to kill to find his son.

Lindsey fumbled to open the basement door to Wolfram and Hart while keeping a kicking Connor from screaming. He could not afford to be careless now; the Senior Partners did not know he was back and if they found out he was, let alone using their building, he knew he was as good as dead. Lilah had promised him security would not pick him up if he entered the basement door, but he was not taking any chances.

Lindsey finally managed to open the door. "Thank you." He mumbled as he carried Connor through, holding the two and a half year olds mouth.

Connor, however, was sick of Lindsey, and bit down hard on the ex-lawyers hand just as Lindsey was carrying him through the door.

"Damn it!" Lindsey smacked Connor hard across the face, causing Angel's son to stop biting.

Connor was in shock that he had been hit, and it was apparent, because he did not move again until Lindsey flicked the lights on in a room on the garage level, and threw Connor onto a table.

"I want my mommy." Connor said quietly, not looking at Lindsey.

"Yeah?" Lindsey smirked. "Well your mommy is dead." He thought of Lilah.

"No." Connor looked up, defiant.

"Yes." Lindsey teased the child back. "And the fake mommy you have now…she is going to die soon too." Lindsey thought of Cordelia.

"No. She my mommy and she not ever die." Connor crossed his arms over his chest. "She told me."

"She told you she was never going to die?" Lindsey had to laugh. Cordelia was human, eventually she would die regardless of how her life ended.

"She never will. She said." Connor said matter-of-factly.

"You are so much like your dad." Lindsey shook his head, knowing Connor really did not fully understand him. "He lives in a dream world too."

"You are bad." Connor studied Lindsey's face and then said simply. "Bad man."

Before Lindsey could respond, Lilah seemed to emerge from the shadows. "Tie him up."

"What?" Lindsey looked at Lilah.

"The brat." He pointed at Connor. "Tie him up."

"He's a kid. He isn't going to do anything." Lindsey said. He couldn't help it, but it felt wrong to him to tie Connor up.

"He's Angel's kid, and you aren't supposed to even be in this building. If the Senior Partners found out, both of us would be dead. I can't risk it. Tie him up." Lilah explained.

Lindsey thought for a second, and then realized Lilah was right. He sighed, grabbing a rope and pulling Connor toward him.

"No!" Connor tried to struggle from Lindsey's grasp.

Lindsey grabbed Connor, pushing the child down on the table hard, and pulling his hands behind his back. He was surprised at the strength Connor possessed for a two and a half year old, and Lindsey struggled to hold Connor still as he tied his hands behind his back.

Connor whimpered and cried. He was scared now and it was evident to both Lindsey and Lilah, and neither could really look at the crying child as he sat curled in a ball, his chest heaving up and down as he tried not to cry loudly. "I want my mommy." Connor mumbled against the table.

Angel fumbled through the remains of his weapon cabinets. He was having a hard time finding all of his weapons since Wesley and Gunn had rearranged the cabinet when Angel had taken off earlier in the year. The rest of the Fang Gang hurried around the lobby as Cordelia made her way down the stairs carrying Liam.

"Do you have everything you need, Angel?" Wesley asked.

"Where is my little crossbow?" Angel asked.

"In the basement." Gunn answered. "I'll run down and get it." He disappeared down the stairs.

"I hate to bring it up, but do we actually have a plan?" Lorne asked.

"Yeah." Angel turned to face the Fang Gang. "I go and get Connor back."

"Right…" Lorne nodded. "But do we have a plan."

"I'll figure it out on my way over." Angel said, picking up his favorite broad-sword.

Gunn returned from the basement with Angel's crossbow. "Here."

"Thanks." Angel took the weapon.

"So back to the lack of a plan…" Lorne stated.

"Look. The plan is I go in and get Connor back by any means necessary." Angel said.

"And you know what those means are." Cordelia stated from her spot at the bottom of the steps. "They want Angelus."

"So then that's the leverage for Connor." Angel said simply.

"You can't give them Angelus, Angel." Fred said obviously. "That's just insane."

"I need to get Connor back." Angel said. "I just got my family back, I am not losing another part of it." He looked up at Cordelia. "Or another second of their lives."

"Angelus can't be the leverage." Wesley stated. "We need to find another way to get Connor away from them without risking Angelus."

"What if there is no other way?" Fred asked.

Wesley thought for a minute. "There will be. There has to be."

"It doesn't matter." Angel said simply. "As long as I get Connor back, none of it matters. Wesley and Gunn, you guys are coming with me. Fred and Lorne keep an eye on Cordelia and Liam."

"I don't need a babysitter." Cordelia said, almost annoyed.

"Right, I know." Angel moved toward her. "But I need to make sure you and Liam are safe right now. Wolfram and Hart could come back, and I am not risking you." He whispered the last part to her as he gently grazed her cheek with his hand. "I'm so sorry for everything."

Cordelia nodded, knowing Angel was telling the truth. He was truly sorry. "Just get our son back." She whispered back to the vampire she knew she loved.

Angel nodded. "I will. I promise." He then softly kissed Liam on the head and turned back to Wesley and Gunn. "Let's move."

Wesley and Gunn complied, following Angel out the front door of the Hyperion Hotel and leaving Cordelia, Liam, Fred, and Lorne standing on the steps, watching as the three men moved to the gate and down the street toward Wolfram and Hart.

When they were out of sight, Fred moved up next to Cordelia, gently patting the seers back as Cordelia bounced Liam in her arms. "They will be okay."

Cordelia seemed to snap out of the trance she was in and turned to Fred. "Angelus is all they are after. That's what Wolfram and Hart wants."

"We know." Lorne nodded from his spot next to the couch.

"What if that's all they will take in order to get Connor back? If Angelus is the only trade…" Cordelia's voice trailed off as she thought of Angelus returning. This time he would be beyond pissed and they were as good as dead.

"Angel will do whatever he has to in order to protect his family and people." Lorne said. "We all know that, so I don't expect this situation to be any different. He will do whatever he needs to."

"I hope so." Cordelia sighed, looking down at Liam.

Lorne nodded. "He will." He knew Angel would do whatever it took to keep his family safe, no matter what the cost. The demon was just unsure of how extreme those costs would be in the current situation at hand.

Angel, Wesley, and Gunn made their way up through the sewers and into the basement of Wolfram and Hart. They had not been spotted entering the building, or if they had, no one had bothered to stop them. Angel wondered if this was all a set-up with each step he took.

"Where do you think they have Connor?" Gunn whispered as they moved around the dark basement.

Angel shook his head. "Not sure. Could be anywhere."

"Or not." Wesley realized. "Lindsey does not work for Wolfram and Hart. I bet if the Senior Partners knew he was here they would kill him."

"You think?" Gunn asked.

Angel thought for a second. It made sense. No one left Wolfram and Hart and got away with that. He nodded. "Lindsey was stupid for bringing Connor here." He stepped forward, breathing in the air. "And from the smell of it, Connor is not far. Come on." He moved forward.

Gunn shook his head and looked at Wesley. "The Angel smelling-thing is creepy."

"Shh…" Wesley said, following Angel.

Angel moved up the stairs and to the first floor of Wolfram and Hart. They were still not on the lobby floor, but rather the floor even with the garage. Connor's scent was stronger here. "He is somewhere up here."

"Are you sure?" Wesley asked.

Angel nodded and moved down to the second door on his right. He stopped outside the door and looked at Wesley and Gunn. "He is in here."

Gunn nodded, raising his crossbow. "Then let's do this."

Angel nodded and kicked the door in, finding Lilah and Lindsey over a table that Connor was strapped down to. Both Lindsey and Lilah looked up at the vampire who was followed by Gunn and Wesley.

"Let my son go." Angel said simply.

"No problem." Lindsey smirked, knowing Angel wouldn't hurt them if Connor was still on the table. "Just give us Angelus."

"Maybe I'll just feed you to the Senior Partners." Angel growled.

Suddenly, Lindsey became nervous. "What do you mean?"

"Like you are supposed to be in here." Angel smirked, and then looked at Lilah. "Lilah you should know better than to bring Lindsey back in here."

"I have it under control." Lilah tried to not seem threatened. "The Partner's don't even know Lindsey is here."

"But they will." Angel said, matter-of-factly.

"Yeah. Like you can be so sure." Lindsey scoffed.

"Well, someone will know you are here." Wesley said.

"Shut up." Lindsey snapped.

Suddenly Gunn pulled a small gun from his back pocket and shot the ceiling before shooting at the security system box in the corner. Alarms began to go off everywhere.

"Looks like they will be here soon." Gunn laughed.

Lindsey shook his head. "You won't make it out of here alive either."

Angel moved swiftly, gathering Lindsey up by the throat. "I am not alive, I am a vampire, and I will make it out of here." He threw Lindsey the wall and then turned to Lilah. "You come at my family again and I will kill you. You come after Angelus again and you are dead. Understood?"

Lilah nodded, hearing footsteps coming down the hall of security.

Angel quickly untied Connor who leapt into his arms.

"Dad." Connor hugged Angel tight.

"You okay, buddy?" Angel asked his son.

Connor nodded. "Yes."

"Good." Angel looked over at Wesley and Gunn. "Let's get out of here."

"Good idea." Wesley nodded, looking out in the hall to see three security guards running at them from the left. "Come on."

Angel burst out in to the hall followed by Gunn and Wesley. The security guards saw them and chased after the three men and toddler, ignorant to the fact that Lilah and Lindsey were in the room.

Cordelia stood pacing back in forth in the lobby while bouncing Liam in her arms. Fred and Lorne sat at the counter, watching the seer as if she was going to disappear if they looked away for even a split second.

"They have been gone long." Cordelia said, looking out the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of Angel with Connor.

"Not really, Cordy." Fred sighed. "Only an hour or so."

"Still…" Cordelia continued to look out the window.

Lorne stood, moving toward Cordelia. "Why don't you stay away from the window?" He pulled her back toward the center of the room.

"They are coming back." Cordelia took a deep breath and smiled up at Lorne. "I should get Connor's bed made, he will be tired when he comes back." She moved up the stairs with Liam in her arms.

"Should she be up there alone?" Fred asked.

Lorne looked up the stairs after Cordelia. "She will be fine. It won't do her much good worrying down here anyway. At least she can keep herself busy."

"Well then Angel better come back with Connor." Fred said.

"He will." Lorne nodded. "He doesn't have a choice." And that was the truth. Lorne knew Angel would come back with Connor or he wouldn't come back at all. He knew that Angel couldn't lose his son, nor would he be able to face Cordelia if he failed. Lorne also knew that if Connor wasn't back soon, Cordelia was going to lose it. It had become apparent that Cordelia was in fact Connor's mother, caring for her in all the ways a mother ever could. Lorne knew Connor had to come back.

Angel moved swiftly with Connor under one arm and a sword in the other while Gunn and Wesley followed close behind. The guards had still not caught up to them, but Angel knew if they didn't get out of Wolfram and Hart soon it was only a matter of time before they were captured.

"Angel…" Gunn's breath was heavy. "I think they are gaining."

"We need to split up." Angel said.

"You need to get out." Wesley spoke up, breathing just as hard as Gunn. "You and Connor go, Gunn and I can deal with this."

"No." Angel said. "I can't leave you guys in here to do my job."

"Your job is to get Connor home safe." Gunn said simply.

Angel heard the guards getting closer and looked down at Connor in his arms. "Fine." He nodded to Wesley and Gunn and then took off.

Wesley and Gunn watched Angel move one way and they then moved the other way, trying to lead the guards away from the vampire and his son.

Cordelia held Liam and continued to glance out the window for Angel, Connor, Wesley, and Gunn. Fred and Lorne had given up trying to get her to focus on anything but outside the hotel, and the two quietly sat at the counter, playing cards.

"This is ridiculous." Cordelia said, glancing down at Liam. "You're daddy is ridiculous."

"What's ridiculous is that you won't sit for a second, sugar." Lorne glanced at her.

Cordelia just rolled her eyes, but did not say anything as the front door swung open. She held her breath waiting for Angel to walk in with Connor, but instead it was Gunn and Wesley.

"Hey." Gunn smiled up.

Cordelia didn't even greet him. "Where's Angel?"

"He isn't back yet?" Wesley asked.

"No!" Cordelia snapped, shifting Liam from one arm to another. "Should he be?"

Wesley and Gunn looked at each other a little confused. Angel should have beat them back to the hotel, after all, the guards had followed them.

"It will be fine, Cordy." Wesley said. "He was right behind us, I am sure."

Cordelia just stood there numb. Her world was falling in on all sides of her. Angel and Connor may both be gone for good, and she did not get the chance to tell Angel she really truly loved him, or hold Connor one last time.

Angel had made it out of Wolfram and Hart with Connor safely in his arms. He didn't bother to look back at the law firm, and kept pace down the dark alley behind the building, glad he wasn't alive to need a chance to catch his breath.

"Daddy?" Connor said, once they were out of the alley and back on the busy streets of L.A.

"What is it?" Angel had slowed down his pace now, and glanced at his son, who was clinging to his leather jacket as if it was his last life line.

"I want mommy." Connor said simply, resting his head on Angel's shoulder.

Angel nodded down at his son. "So do I." Angel smiled faintly at the thought of Cordelia. "That's why we are going back to the hotel, so we can see mommy."

"You gonna leave us again?" Connor asked.

Angel looked down at his son. "No way. I love you guys.

"Mommy said you always love us." Connor said.

Angel nodded. "She's right. I always have loved you and Liam and I always will."

"Then don't leave." Connor said. "Don't leave mommy. She sad when you go."

Angel sighed. "I'll try not too, bud, but sometimes mommy's and daddy's just can't always get along."

"My mommy loves you." Connor said simply.

Angel smiled at his son's innocence, so grateful to have the boy back in his arms as he turned the corner toward the hotel, but was cut short as someone stepped out from the shadows.

"Awww how cute, a vampire and his spawn." Lilah stepped out of the shadows. It was visible in an instant that half her face was bruised and Angel could smell the blood on her knuckles.

"Didn't you hear me before?" Angel was furious at the sight of the lawyer. "I said leave my family alone!"

"Relax." Lilah put her hands up. "You win."

Angel looked at her for a moment. "I win?"

Lilah pointed to the bruise on her face. "Senior Partners got rid of me. They caught up to me and Lindsey after you managed to get out of the building."

"I can see that." Angel smirked.

Lilah rolled her eyes. "Anyway, they decided to go in a new direction."

"And which way is that?" Angel asked.

"The way in which they fire me, do God knows what to Lindsey, and decide that Angelus isn't worth the hastle…_yet_." Lilah said, slowly turning her back to Angel.

"So what?" Angel called after her.

"So your safe." Lilah gave him a half wave. "For now." And with that she walked off into the shadows.

Angel looked down at Connor and smiled. Things were starting to look better for him and his family. He quickly sprinted back to the hotel.

Cordelia was changing Liam's diaper upstairs when she heard the front door open. She froze for a minute, holding her breath, until she heard Angel's voice in the lobby. She quickly gathered Liam up.

"Daddy is back!" Cordelia kissed Liam on the forehead before rushing down the stairs with him. From the landing she could see Angel holding Connor and Gunn, Wesley, Fred, and Lorne surrounding the vampire.

"Angel?" Cordelia called out.

Wesley, Lorne, Gunn, and Fred took the sight of Cordelia as their cue to head toward the office, giving the vampire and seer some time alone with their family.

Angel turned to see Cordelia rushing down the stairs straight towards him. "Hey."

"Mommy!" Connor wiggled out of Angel's arms and met Cordelia half way, throwing his arms around her leg.

"Oh baby, you're okay!" Cordelia knelt down, still holding Liam in one arm and grabbing Connor in a bear hug with her free arm. She kissed him and squeezed him, so happy to have the boy she considered her son back.

"He was tough." Angel stood, shifting his weight from one foot to the other as he watched Cordelia hold onto Connor like she was never letting go.

"Yeah!" Connor agreed, pulling away from Cordelia and sticking his fist up. "I was tough."

Cordelia just laughed at him. "Oh really?"

"Daddy was more tough!" Connor exclaimed, clearly un-traumatized by his night as he bolted for the couch and being to jump on it. "He fighted everyone!"

Cordelia slowly stood, looking at Angel. "Thank you for bringing him home safe."

Angel nodded, almost sadly. He had half hoped Cordelia was going to rush down the stairs into his arms, not to hug Connor and ignore him completely. He knew now that any chance he had ever had with his seer was over. She would always be the mother to both of his children now but she would never be more. "Well, he belongs here with you. This is his home and I know he is safe here."

"What does that mean?" Cordelia moved to put Liam in his portable crib that was set up in the lobby.

"Means that I know he will be safe here. I won't worry." Angel looked toward Liam. "About _either_ of my boys. I know you will keep them safe when I am not around."

"Why wouldn't you be around?" Cordelia was now standing in front of Angel, her arms crossed.

"I want to give you space, Cordy." Angel told her. "I don't want to hover and I don't want to keep you from living your life."

"Angel…" Cordelia started.

"No, Cordy. Let me finish." Angel cut her off. "Cordelia, I love you. I think that's obvious but I can't make this work because it's how I want things to be. You need a chance to live a normal life and be happy."

"Angel." Cordelia took a step closer to him. "Did you ever stop and think that maybe I could be happy with you?"

Before Angel could answer, Cordelia pulled him into her and gave him the kiss she had longed to give him since the first day she ever saw him in Sunnydale.

When they broke apart, Angel looked down, confused. "Cordy…I…"

"I know what I said before, Angel, and I was just so upset and hurt and confused but I realized that all of those feelings only crossed my mind because I love you. I always have." Cordelia told him in one quick breath.

Angel smiled down at her. "I love you too." This time he pulled her in for the kiss.

The kiss was broken apart by Connor's giggling from the couch. Angel and Cordelia both glanced at their son.

"What are you laughing about?" Cordelia smiled at Connor.

Connor continued to giggle, covering his mouth slightly and hanging on the back of the couch. "Get a room…" He giggled.

The smile on Angel's face turned to shock at his son's comment. "What?"

Cordelia just laughed again. "I am going to have to keep an eye on what his Uncle Gunn is teaching him."

Angel wrapped his arms around Cordelia, kissing her neck. "Well, this time around, I can help you."

"Oh yeah?" Cordelia tilted her head toward the vampire, smiling.

"Yeah." Angel smiled back. "I think it's about time I become a family man."

**THE END**


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